Be Born! Manly Masked Magical Guy Nanohiko!
by Uboa
Summary: AU The God-Empress of Mankind was bored, for which even the Gods were not immune. Something had to be done, so she decreed: Let the Genderbending of Lyrical Nanoha be! So as She decreed, let it be SO! Lo: the Hero, Masked Magical Guy Nanohiko be born!
1. Chapter 1

* * *

Disclaimer:

Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha is the creative property of Seven Arcs, whom created this wonderful anime/manga series. Anything not attributed to Seven Arcs belongs to their respective owners, such as other series, references, and vice-versa. This story is written purely just for fun, guys; please for God's sake, don't sue us! We're just college students with too much free time on our hands! On the other hand, any specific author created characters we created for this fic (despite how unoriginal they may be at times) are ours. So without further ado, let's get on with the show!

The Surgeon General's Warning:

Read at your own risk.

* * *

**BE BORN**! / MANLY! MASKED! MAGICAL! GUY Nanohiko

Show me the way to you...!

Prologue 01:

A Little Wish / CROSS ENCOUNTER!

A Genderbending Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha AU fanfic co-produced by the evil genius of Tempest Dynasty and James "Ray" Edwards

* * *

Nine years old.

What a boring age to be...

Kindergarten was over, so say goodbye to nap time and sleeping in on Saturdays—the Fourth Grade was starting. Hello, Cram School! Hello, Saturday School! Why? Because entrance exams for Junior High started the year after that, then there was High School to worry about, and let's not forget about University. Hello, part-time job! Normal. Hello, writing a resume and sitting in stuffy suits waiting to be interviewed for a job! Totally normal. Hello, bills and taxes! Totally average just like everyone else will be, following the same footsteps left behind by those who came before them, which was nothing like the life of the heroes and characters in prime time anime and masked hero dramas. Those people were really something. Something extraordinary. Exciting. Different. They had a place to call their own in life; somewhere they belonged; something only they could do!

Takamachi Nanohiko sighed inwardly as he rode the bus to school.

It was a place unreachable, impossible for any person in the world because it was all fake. There were no heroes, no magic, no fantastic intergalactic organization that protected the law and order of the stars, no evil malignant who had to be defeated to save the day. They were just actors and actresses, backed by a huge company or other, putting something together for a profit to entertain the masses, to give people some escape from the usual, normal, every day grind.

How Nanohiko hated those two words "the normal" and "the usual".

He was the youngest of three siblings, his parents happily married and still as madly in love with each other as newlyweds. The honey-haired boy was pretty confident he would probably see a few more brothers or sisters by the time he graduated from university at the rate his folks were going. His elder brother and sister was another remarkable spot of "sunshine", too. Technically, Miyuki-_nee_san was adopted; however, she was also "technically" a distant cousin of theirs; the reasons are rather complicated and Nanohiko had yet to receive a thorough explanation. In any case, with the absurdly happy atmosphere of harmony and love in the household, he supposed it was fine that he left well enough alone.

…Even if the situation made him feel terribly out of place, like some third wheel tagging along. Just where was his place in the family? Was he, Takamachi Nanohiko, meant to be some kind of trophy little brother? The perfect little brother? Dutiful, pious and respectful to his elders, the child whom should be happy, grateful that he was being nurtured into such a model Japanese boy, practically a _chibi_ samurai. He was taught right and wrong. He was taught manners. He was taught sincerity. He was taught kindness. He was taught charity. Of course, he was taught courage as well. He naturally excelled in the martial arts, just like his brother, sister, and father before him, and would likely succeed to their dojo in due time.

Takamachi Nanohiko was grateful for all these valuable, precious things he had been taught, yet would he ever have a chance at all to use them? What good would they be in the normal world he lived in now? Everyone used the common things. It was what to be expected. There was never a chance for him to do or experience anything else. For example, there was no need for courage when everyone obeyed what was right, and ultimately, such a normal existence transformed him into the reserved though kind boy he was today. No one knew of his profound thoughts...

...Or his silent despair.

"Oi! Nano-_boke_, stop spacing out!" a familiar voiced reminded him sternly, as he felt a familiar set of knuckles rap against the top of his head. "I've been waving this career survey sheet in your face for a full three minutes now!"

"Ah...! Um, s-sorry, Arisa-_iinchou_," he apologized, with a blush, to snickers and guffaws all around. Nanohiko had not even noticed he had arrived at school and class was already in session!

"Hey, you! Stop laughing and fill these out before that bonkers Despair-sensei comes back. And, geez, Nano-_boke_, get a grip. Boys ought to be able to take care of themselves by now, and—hey, you! Who said we were on a first name basis when I'm on duty!?"

It had only been about two weeks since the new semester started, but Alisa Bannings (Arisa to her friends) had firmly secured her place now and forever as a class representative, burning her image into so many young minds. There was not even a vote as "Despair-sensei" had waltzed in on the first day of class, commiserated about something or another, and arbitrarily assigned her as class rep, since she was the only one who spoke out against him. Then again, arbitrarily assigning might be saying a bit much, he stated that she had the qualities of someone in charge and the blonde had the bright idea that he meant she would make a good class rep. So, Arisa proceeded to set up an impromptu vote, practicing democracy as she called it, much to the delight of Despair-sensei, and ultimately won by "sheer force of ego".

No one was prepared really to go up against that.

"_Ara_, _ara_, Arisa-chan, aren't you being a little harsh on Takamachi-kun?" a certain violet-haired heiress chimed in the knick of time to save him. Honestly, without her calming influence, for which he was grateful, Nanohiko was convinced that Arisa would "burn" out of control herself.

"Eh?"

"We've known each other since kindergarten, so... Oh, I know, I read this in a book the other day. _Ufufufufu_, Arisa-chan, truth is, you really like Takamachi-kun and bullying him is just your way of showing tough love, _ne_?"

"AHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! TSU-KI-MURA! SU-ZU-KA!"

Then again, Suzuka was as much as a calming influence as she was a spark to rouse the flames higher, nowadays. If he had not met these two girls, both of whom were heiresses to multimillion fortunes, Nanohiko could not have imagined having lived to this very day. It was the first and only time he ever had to use "Courage" for as younger children Suzuka had been bullied by the more aggressive Arisa; naturally, he had stood up to the latter. What he did not expect for all three of them to become friends (though those older and more romantic than him would have called an insane one-in-a-trillion coincidence that he ought to be super grateful for). It was a completely strange though not unwelcomed outcome, for he could not imagine life without them, and since then the girls have both matured in their own ways to becoming responsible young "adults".

However, he could not say the same for himself.

Sigh.

_A Career Survey, huh?_ thought Nanohiko. He stared listlessly at the form laid out on his desk, as his peers settled down from the excitement with some disappointment. Today was Saturday; a half day for school, and everyone was looking for an excuse to procrastinate, so they could head home with the least amount of effort expended. But what was there for him to do about this difficult conundrum?

There was only one answer he could write truthfully, after all.

_Kami-sama_, if you are there, if you can hear me, could you listen to one wish from me, please? Pretty please? I promise, it'll be the last thing I ever ask from you. From here on out I promise I'll do things right, and, well, if you need me, I am yours, so... that's why: please, let something happen! Something special. Something fantastic. Something lyrical. Something magical. Something that will change my life forever. I want to know. I want to find out for myself: where I belong, what it is that makes me special, what I can do… that something only I could do. Please, _Kami-sama_: let something happen!

And so he wrote:

_I want to be a Hero_.

--

The end of another day: how exhausting, though at least tomorrow was Sunday. Arisa had not been too happy when he had declined the afternoon with her and Suzuka, citing a bout of "Blue" and the desire to get a head start on next week's assignments. When they were younger, it would have likely sparked a confrontation, but thankfully, Suzuka had grown into her own place, and had tactfully suggested a compromise: he would spend Sunday afternoon with them instead, fair enough, no?

Of course, Nanohiko knew he had to agree. There was no argument, protests, or anything when it came to girls. If they wanted something, they were going to get it, as he had come to learn quickly through his friends, arguably, his closest friends. Some boys thought he was a little off hanging around with girls. Other boys had a ridiculously deep respect and admiration for him, especially considering the said girls were Arisa and Suzuka, who were apparently in the top ten of their "Bingo Books"...whatever that is.

In any case, it was best he turned in for the night. Knowing those two, well mostly because of Arisa, as she self-appointed herself the life of the party so to speak, tomorrow should prove to be an interesting distraction from the usual, hopefully. His parents approved the outing already, and he would be set to leave after breakfast and a few errands were settled to prepare Midori-ya for business on Monday morning.

Yup, what a day, but still... it was totally normal, too; these futile attempts to escape for a little while from the norm.

* * *

_Someone? Anyone? Can you hear me? Listen to my voice; this might be the only transmission I can get out... Listen: your city, no, your entire planet is under siege, every living thing on this world can live or die at any moment. We have done the unforgivable. We have awakened something has, something ancient, something that men sealed away in the first place many aeons ago in a forgotten place, a forgotten time so that others would not open Pandora's Box. It is a terrible power, fit to rival the divine, god-like, and it preys upon Man: mind, body, and soul. _

_I am sorry._

_Sorry that I was not able to stop this from happening. Sorry that I brought this calamity to your world. Sorry that I, a Soldier, cannot fight this enemy alone. All I have succeeded in doing is delaying the inevitable, but… not all hope is lost yet._

_I have need of your aid, but only one of you may step forth for I will not sacrifice so many like fodder to fire. There is a slumbering champion, a warrior amongst your number, I sense. Someone waiting to prove their worth, worthy to represent you all in this fight for tomorrow. Please, if you can hear me, answer my call. Lend us your strength!_

_Awaken! _

* * *

Takamachi Nanohiko awoke, standing?! He yelped in surprise, nearly losing his balance, as his thoughts lit ablaze in a whirl of activity and bewilderment. Where am I? Why am I dressed? Did I sleep walk all the way here? And what in the world was that voice just now? A dream? It sounded so mixed up, like a girl and a boy trying to talk over and under each other simultaneously. Weird. And, what's that noi..._whoa_.

The sky.

The sky was on fire, burning blue, with little stars or sparks sparkling in the air. Blazing shards of azure light, shades brighter than Arisa's eyes, streaked brilliantly every which way, too close to be shooting stars or comets. Pretty, fantastic; Nanohiko was mesmerized by the continually shifting scene. Arcs of electric lightning now joined the fray with thunder cracks, vermillion and blue. Where were they coming from? What was making them? He wanted to know he wanted to see more, his feet carrying him unconsciously forward, past the high rises and down the street, further ahead, buildings clearing, giving way to a broader space, open sky.

The salty smell of the sea greeted his nose, his ears heard the roar, and his eyes saw...

_Uminari Marine Tower?!_ he thought, mystified by the sight.

A fantastic dog fight was transpiring over a hundred meters up in the air, right at the top of the lighthouse. The two opponents caught in a life or death struggle: a blazing blue star chased by a smoldering bolt of sickly violet that seemed to trail noxious smoke in its wake. Sporadic gunfire, shrieking beams of destruction, the shouts of bullets marked by tracers, and even screaming guided "missiles", were exchanged between them, as they weaved, jockeyed, and broke off for position in classical air combat maneuvers. Fiery explosions pockmarked the kaleidoscopic sky; braking slashes and sudden trailing zigzags appeared in feats of unbelievable super-maneuverability, when the two suddenly diverted from their flight paths to clash thunderously in melee combat no less! Again and again, they thundered before hastily jetting away, banking sharply, leaving stark contrails as they accelerated, spitting death and "flame" at each other.

Suddenly, a pause: the deadly sky dance ended, and the two combatants stared each other down before the gaze of Uminari Marine Tower, still miraculously unharmed. One of them spoke, the ill star of sickly violet, addressing the other in a malevolent, warping voice bearing a thousand cries of men, women, and children. It was so terrible that the very air seemed to tremble, and made Nanohiko feel as if his own brain was festering and aching; an unnatural power:

"Statement: For a descendant lower life form of _The Enkindlers_, I praise you for the resistance you have given, and to reduce one magnificent as I to a mere five Jewels is no easy feat, even in the haze of awakened slumber. However, this trivial diversion ends here, _unclean _animal. The scenario proceeds now to the Jewel Master's calculations, and there is but one course: your extermination."

The blaze blue star riposted in kind, carrying an unusual quality of two voices speaking as one, boy and girl, though much more human compared to other and not so disconcerting. Nanohiko found he could sympathize with them, for they exhibited the same discomfort as he, and he hoped he or she was not the villain in this matter.

"_Ugh_, Goddess of Magic and Mysteries Almighty, there you go again with that _sick_-_sucking _singing voice of yours. Geez, seriously, don't talk unless you have to, and honestly, can't your type come up with anything more **original **than that? I might not look like much, _may_-be, but I have heard that kinda ego-boosting doom-and-gloom speech since I was seven cycles old! It starts to get on my nerves after awhile, like a smelly, rotten blob of space zombie slime that spawned after you left Ganymede rock lobster in a fridge for a **cycle**. ...Oh, sorry, I was reminiscing over something in my private life, outside the uniform in blue; I hope I didn't deflate your ego trip."

Astonishingly, the boy realized then, he could understand both of the stars. How was that possible? By all means, with the powers they brought to bare, they were seemingly visitors from outer space or the furthest corner of imagination. What were they doing here? Why were they fighting?

"Riposte: Your bluster is meaningless, animal," derided the violet star, as the evil miasma around it intensified with ominous lightning strikes. "You have done much to inconvenience I, and for that transgression, there is but one result: death."

"Yeah, yeah, you really like repeating yourself, don't you? Sorry, I can't feel you on that one, 'cause let's face the facts here, your singing sucks."

"Condescension: Foolish _double helix_, what more can you offer in resistance? All that lies ahead in the scenario is the erasure of your faulty genes from existence. There is no past, no present, no future for you. This is the limit of-"

"Limit? Ah-hahahahahahha!" the blue star twinkled with laughter, "Did you just say limit? My limit? No yesterday, no today, no tomorrow? Goddess! AH-ahaha-ohohoho! You dumb-XXXs are all the same, and you never learn the difference either!"

"Reply: Foolishness."

The blue star blazed a little brighter, "Hey-hey, hey, now! just who the hell do you think I am? Listen up! Clean out those ears, and listen real well. Do the impossible! See the invisible! Kick all your reason to the curb! That's how We, who hold the promise of Courage, the Great Gurren Brigade, do things! Bridging Yesterday. Today. And Tomorrow. I have sworn to protect it, to grasp it all with these hands, for the sake of the future, a brighter tomorrow for everyone!"

"Patronizing Analysis: What conceited words. Your time is up, _carbon_," boomed the violet star. Now, terrifyingly, its miasma was an overwhelming pitch black that seemed to suck the life out from the twinkling stars in the air around the lighthouse.

A showdown was coming...

"Don't believe me? Then, don't blink! Open up those baby blues wide and shiny. You don't want to miss it, now. I'll prove it to you: a miracle created by the bond of all our hearts! 'Cause to a Brave of the Gurren-_dan_, space and time don't matter to us; no matter how far apart we are, we're never alone! Everyone. Let's GO, together!"

With that famous declaration in the vein of "_IKOUZE, MINNA_!", the burning blue sky and the twinkling stars all came rushing back, a great upheaval so massive that it drained all sound from the air. They gathered at a single point, an outstretched fist, or so Nanohiko thought it must have been, held high above the blue star, coalescing into a brilliant shining nexus of light and power, a beacon, no, a star! The very night seemed to shy away, pitch black fleeing in fear, as the wind whipped and churned into a nimbus of air and gravity, lifting particles to fuel the super mass.

It was awesome. It was fantastic. It was magical. Out of this world! Nanohiko never wanted this moment to end!

"Disbelief: What? Impossible. The numbers do not lie, all is within calculations, the scenario...! But how, where have you pulled this power from!? The earlier high-energy attacks have already diminished the target's combat endurance severely. You were at your limit mere microns ago. How!"

"A smart magician never lets anything go to waste. C'mon, you didn't think this lightshow was just that a show, did you?"

"Shout: Silence!"

"Hey, I might not know anyone who lives here, but it's my responsibility to protect this world too, eh? These people don't know anything, and we just showed up out of nowhere making a fuss of things. Whatever problems they have is already enough without adding our own to the mess. They are innocent, and that is why, I can't just let you walk away and destroy this world, especially without giving it my all! Now, how about it: an all-or-nothing, full-frontal duel, _O Eternal Perfect Primeval_, or… are you **scared**, now?"

"RAGE: INSOLENCE, YOU SHALL PERISH WITH THEM ALL!"

The violet star exploded into a full blown, overwhelming wave of darkness, cursed and maddening, that screamed with the howls of millions. They were ghoulish smoldering green wraiths bubbling at its surface, filled with wanting and hatred for all whom lived, before, now, and forever. Together, they had become an aspect of death, despair that would swallow the new sun whole.

Undaunted, the blue star plunged into the embrace of the abyss headlong and struck...

"This is the last card I have got to play! The shining light of hope, everyone's future, lies here in this fist! Heroic Sign: **NOVA **_**IMPACT**_ LET'S DO IT! BLAZE: BRIGHTER, HOTTER, STRONGER! BREAK THROUGH! TO TOMORROW!"

...So did the world shatter in an apotheosized roar of light, the Dark blistering, bulging with terrible boils and puss, before disintegrating, returning to the nothingness from whence it spawned. The surrounding low-rise buildings, Uminari Marine Tower, all being stripped, blasted, and blown away into shining sparks, as two voices cried out: one in defeat and one in triumph.

"_Urrghhh_! ...In-incon...ceiv-able... A dis...gusting.. _Monkey_... h-has... this... much...po-wer!?"

"And so... This is our victory, _heh_."

_Th-That was so cool. Awesome!_ came the excited thought to Takamachi Nanohiko, whom never felt more alive in his short life. The light, the intense burning heat, the electricity, everything seemed to wash over him, pick him up, and spirit him away like a feverish dream.

_Please_, _let this be real_!

* * *

To be continued...

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

Welcome to another tale, another twist. I'm sure you can all guess what's going on, right? If not, you may want to reread it all. In any case, thank you for reading and be sure to review. You could also contact us via email, should you so desire.

Wait for it. Another one is coming.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer:

Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha is the creative property of Seven Arcs, whom created this wonderful anime/manga series. Anything not attributed to Seven Arcs belongs to their respective owners, such as other series, references, and vice-versa. This story is written purely just for fun, guys; please for God's sake, don't sue us! We're just college students with too much free time on our hands! On the other hand, any specific author created characters we created for this fic (despite how unoriginal they may be at times) are ours. So without further ado, let's get on with the show!

The Surgeon General's Warning:

Read at your own risk.

* * *

**BE BORN**! / MANLY! MASKED! MAGICAL! GUY Nanohiko

Show me the way to you...!

Prologue 02:

From the Flames / ANOTHER CRISIS?!

A Genderbending Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha AU fanfic co-produced by the evil genius of Tempest Dynasty and James "Ray" Edwards

* * *

Ashes.

Smoke.

Embers.

Fire.

Air.

Choking.

Blood.

Sweat.

Tears.

_Pain_.

There was no mistake. It was real. He knew he should have been horrified, reviled by the scene of wanton destruction: a strange world that blinked and twisted, like white noise and snow from the television. Everything in the area, the buildings, the streets, the sidewalks, and Uminari Marine Tower seemed to flicker back and forth, between a state of burning ruin and the pristine condition they were in before the climax of the battle.

How strange. How fascinating. How magical! These were Nanohiko's thoughts of wonder, as he struggled to his feet, favoring his bruised side. He was covered from head to toe soot from debris; the explosion must have floored him, and even now, the sizzling asphalt bore an imprint of himself. Oh, and that awful irritating smell! Had he been burned too? Oh well, it could not be helped.

Why did he think of such foreign thoughts? Because his body at present was the only proof that the unreal battle had taken place; something, some power seemed to be wiping it away, or at least trying to, as if an artist were erasing sketch lines on a sheet of paper with an eraser. Marvelous! He had no fear; only a burning curiosity, an unquenchable desire to understand the wondrous and dangerous forces at work here.

The boy, ignoring his injuries, walked, wading into the tumultuous maelstrom: sometimes chaos, sometimes order. Shadows, lights, flame, static, and all sensations flickered. The only thing he could trust was his instincts. What had become of the two stars? One had fallen, surely, but what of the other? The Blue Star?

They urged him onwards, his gut feelings to the burning and not burning wreckage and no wreckage, at the foot of there and not there Uminari Marine Tower. It was most surreal sight, like walking in a waking dream. He ran the risk of being burned at anytime but still he walked onwards into the hell of smoke, fire, and metal.

"Some-one! Any, _ughk_-_ha_, an-anyone," coughed Nanohiko, as he cried out over the roar of the molten inferno. Talking it seemed was not such a good idea, for it was already hard enough just to breathe. Still, he had to try; he had to be certain no one had been left behind. "H-Hey!"

For his good intentions, perhaps, the boy found himself rewarded: a pained moan, accompanied by a groggy curse spoken in a foreign, yet melodic language greeted his ears. The person must be close by, and thus encourage, he called out again to follow. Through the haze, Nanohiko soon came across a figure buried under some oddly permanent rubble. The stuff, a mix of metal and concrete, was red hot, burning, and the poor person was too weak to free himself.

It was a crisis, and one the boy rose to challenge, eagerly. Knowing it was a race against time, for even his own health was at risk here. There was an unhealthy stench in the already suffocating scorched air. Perhaps, a gas main underground had been broken and was now fueling the fires, but it did not matter. He needed to rescue the survivor and get them away from here as soon as possible.

The twisted rubble looked too heavy, not to mention too hot, for him to physically move alone. However, there seemed to be plenty of spots where he could stick in some manner of support and leverage the pile up, with his own body weight. It ought to hold long enough for him to his person out, and the rest was question of either of walking them or dragging them. He hoped it would not come down to the latter.

_All right_. _Time to go to work_, _Nanohiko!_

* * *

He had done it, sure enough; all that martial training and physical drills his father and siblings put him through regularly at the dojo had paid off at last. Rescuing people was sure hard work. The person was totally out of it, and though they tried to help by moving on their own, it really got more in Nanohiko's way than anything helpful. Fortunately, despite whatever delirium, the person seemed to be capable of walking, so it was much simpler matter of throwing their arm over his shoulder and getting them away from ground zero.

The boy had walked them a good block or two away, and yet behind him, the strange flickering of a burning reality continued. More curious, the city was unnaturally quiet, not a sound was heard but the moan of the wind, and the sporadic churning of the dissonant flames. It was about then he finally fixed his attention upon his charge, stopping at an empty bench on the sidewalk to set them upon it in the neon shadow of a bland low-rise building. His throat was parched, and he was rather thirsty, which he imagined the delirious person shared the same condition from their hoarse, dry coughs.

Luckily, there was a vending machine nearby, and he dressed with the appropriate set of trousers, containing his wallet and keys, he had prepared for his Sunday outing with the girls. Bottled water never tasted so good. Nanohiko returned swiftly, with an extra for his charge, wherefore he found himself surprised in a number of ways.

It seemed he had rescued "The Blue Star", and this person seemed to be attuned to the same phenomenon occurring just a block away. Their burnt, sooty form flickered, too, but instead of in state of fine condition or ruin, the Blue Star shifted between a boy and a girl, right about his age, and maybe a little taller. He and she had short dark blue hair, a cut respectable for the boy but a little on the tomboy side for the girl. Both of them were wearing some kind of military battledress uniform: gloves, dark combat boots, belt, trousers, the blouse tucked in, and a fitted, high neck overcoat with odd spikes on the sleeves right on his upper arms. The girl "version", though, eschewed the trousers in favor of, well, a "battle miniskirt" and shear thigh-high stockings of an unknown material, leaving...

Was this the fabled "_Zettai Ryouiki_" he heard some of the boys gossiping about?

Suddenly, Nanohiko felt his nose burning, his cheeks aflame, and a rather bizarre, "uncomfortableness" from his head to his toes. Perhaps, it would be wise to divert his observations elsewhere, for that _mesmerizing_ space of exposed skin seemed to be undermining his better judgment...erm. Anyways, ahem! That was not the true object of his fascination: the "glowing veins of rainbow" that was what captured his imagination about this person.

With the air abuzz, they blazed brightly, lines, visible even through his and her uniform that formed geometric patterns, reminding of the pictures he had seen of the Nazca Lines in a book. However, the boy sensed these "lines of symmetry" he saw were much closer to something like, the human nervous system or the veins and arteries in his own body. The best analogy, likely, was what he perceived were "Circuits" for these patterns, radiating out from a singular center, had no curves: only lines that would intersect at planes and junctions, forming angles, zigzags, and figures.

A pitiful moan snapped Nanohiko out of his contemplations. A wave of guilt washed over the young boy's consciousness, as he come to a terrible realization: they were in pain, beads of sweat of trickled down their seething faces, as they spasmed sporadically on the bench. How insensitive, how shameful of him to be so caught up in the wonder of his own curiosity that he would forget that the human being here needed his help.

But, wait: how could he even be certain they were human? The things that happened just moments ago at Uminari Marine Tower, everything he had experienced this night...could humans accomplish such things? Of course not, so what did that make the stranger in his care?

"It doesn't matter," Nanohiko told himself, firmly. He buried the wave of fear and suspicion that threatened to steal his heart, by thumping a clenched fist to his chest; the spark of pain, steeling his resolve. "This person fought for the city, for everyone's sake. I don't know what they plan to do after this, but right now, I owe them one, and I've got to do what I can to take care of him, er, her, uhh, _it_."

He and she seemed to be fighting something, a fever perhaps judging by the worsening of their delirium. Now that the boy thought about it, the symptoms had been pretty bad already on their way over. There was little doubt that his charge was ill, the sickly pallor of their face a dead giveaway. What was he to do? There were not many options available to him.

So Nanohiko did the only thing he could: he stayed by their side, gave them water to drink, and held their quivering gloved hands. It was a long, lonesome time that seemed to go on forever, punctuated only unintelligible murmurs and curses, and the immense heat! Oh, he thought the blaze back at the chaotic zone of Uminari Marine Tower had been hot; he and she in comparison was setting brand new records for human body temperature. The boy was astonished they had not caught on fire yet.

Fortunately, his and her condition stabilized, to Nanohiko's relief, until a sudden violent spasm of coughs and flailing limbs broke out. The latter he could have passed on, definitely, and it was all he could do to keep them from potentially harming himself. Despite being barely lucid and weakened, he and she were still much stronger than appearances gave otherwise. Now, he was not a stranger to blood, but the unexpected and unpleasant splatter of the stuff, drooling out of his charge's mouth, onto his clothes left a definite souring on the young boy's mood.

How was he supposed to explain this in the morning?

More importantly, Nanohiko wished he knew how to treat them of their ailment, but it was unlike any sickness he had ever encountered before. Thankfully, after this dark turn, he and she's condition showed a dramatic improvement: the rainbow circuits bled red and simmered to an azure blue, before fading away altogether. The sweltering waves of heat died away, and their breathing and pulse slowing down to a more regular rhythm, as their forms finally settled down into something definite: a boy, so it seemed.

His charge relaxed, and deeming it safe, the elementary schoolboy released the foreigner. He still seemed out of it, very tired, but lucid, for he opened his eyes to reveal dark pools of blue, bearing a presence that appeared to be barely contained. A storm, perhaps? The fellow took in his surroundings, quickly, wincing with a pitiable groan, as he made to stand.

Instinctively, Nanohiko helped the cursing boy up to his feet, though common sense stated he should not be letting his charge move around at all after such a traumatic episode. However, strange was the way of boys and men, and he did not wish to make insult on the foreigner's personal sense of honor or worth. It was when the exhausted boy laid those storming eyes on him that he figured now was a good time as any to speak, with his attention on him.

"Uh, h-hey, you okay, man?" Nanohiko began, somewhat lamely.

The boy replied, much more forcefully, in his foreign tongue, a sharp questioning look in his eyes.

"Er...excuse me?"

Alas, Nanohiko did not understand a single word of what he was saying. Not quite understanding his own predicament, the boy repeated himself to him, for which he could only reply with a helpless expression. With a frustrated cringe on his face, the dark blue-haired boy repeated himself again, speaking slowly and very emphatically. It was obvious he was becoming angry judging by his increasingly irate tone and body language.

Nanohiko tried to assuage him, as best as he could, waving his hand and shaking his head apologetically in an effort to communicate his own awkward feelings, but... "_Anou_, I don't under-" ...well, the foreign boy was dissatisfied to say the least. Shooting him a sharp look, it was all the warning Nanohiko got, before the boy, quicker and more strongly than he could have anticipated in a near-invalid individual, grabbed a fistful of his shirt and hauled him in. The slap of their foreheads colliding registered an instant later across his own slate blue eyes, before pain erupted, his eyes seeing double, as he flinched and tried to jump back, only to find himself held fast.

An infuriated, broiling snarl assaulted his ear the next, saying:

"That's because you're NOT listening to me, YOU MOTHAXXX-SCUM-SUCKING, GLOW STICK RIDING, VANILLA SMELLIN' _ABO_! **Hah**..._E CHUUUUUUUUUU TAAAAAAAA_!"

With an earful of that was Nanohiko released -- more like pushed to the ground -- to nurse his aching forehead, behind, and assaulted ear, not to mention try to piece together everything that just happened. How on Earth can a head butt make him understand a foreign language just like that? Does it work with English too (that way he would not have to take that stinking class anymore)? And...

"Owowow! Th-that, that really hurt_ nano da yo_!" he cried pathetically, feeling tears come to his eyes.

That person did not even feel an ounce of remorse. What he got instead was a totally dark -- dark as in darker than even boiling tar, darkness evil -- look that made him feel very small and effeminate.

"_Ehhhhhhhh_? That. THAT. Hurt, you say?" the foreigner replied all surly like, with a grinning aside, "well, _BOY_ (you sure you even got a pair down there?), GUESS HOW I FEEL, HUH?! You wanna be in the Great Enforcer Chrono's... bleeding boots..._gah-rughkk_..._khak_!"

"Uwah! You're coughing up blood..."

"Thank you, **Abo Nut**..._ugh_... Wh-What are you? Some kind of Master of the Obvious?! _Rrrghh_, stupid Temporal Force Field protocol...won't..."

Wow, this guy sure is a lot like Arisa when she throws a tantrum and goes into _Burning _Arisa mode, thought Nanohiko with an inner face fault, the sweat clinging to the back of his head. Wait, what's this about a Temporal Force Field?

"N-No. But we should get you..."

"WAIT!" cut in the dark blue-haired boy suddenly, with a howl, his eyes wide in a frenzy, as if he were seeing truly for the first time.

"Y-Yes?" Nanohiko replied, uneasily. He prayed to Kami-sama this was not a sign that the fellow across from him was about to attack him in a rabid rage… or worse.

"...Who are you?"

"Uh, me?"

"Yes, **you**!"

"_Anou_, Takamachi Nanohiko, nine years old, erm, I go to-"

"Stereotypical short auburn, maybe honey brown hair, style: gel would make it look stupid -- reminds me of that one Kyo-lucky-something Nanbu fella (must be nightmares for the barber keeping it that way). Eye color: slate blue, kinda of a cute kid (could be a handsome man some day), good shape actually for a nine-year-old, and seems like you can handle yourself in a scrap. Nothin'-special civilian summer attire: short sleeves, trousers, sneakers... Got'cha."

Now, _those_ observations made Nanohiko sweat a little. "Um, I-I saw that fight earlier." Why would a guy think of him as "cute", y'know?

"AH-!" the foreign boy's jaw dropped, eyes wide as saucers. "YOU'RE THE ONE?!"

"Huh?"

"You heard it, you heard it, you heard it... YOU HEARD MY VOICE, DIDN'T YOU?" the boy, erm, Chrono (so Nanohiko thought his name was) shouted at him accusingly, a panicked doom seeming to glaze over his storming eyes.

"_H_-_Hai_, it was me," he answered, suddenly feeling guilty. Was he not supposed to have heard it?

"Ah ha! ...ahahahahhahah! UWAH-AHAHhahahahah! GREAT! Just WICKED GREAT! Of all the people in this freaking town, it had to be a kid! A KID! Even if you mean it as a joke, this is way out of line, Goddess of Mysteries!"

"_Anou_, you're not okay, are you...?"

"Of course not! You green as goblin moss, backwater _Abo _civilian! And neither is anyone else in this city, either!"

"B-But... But you won, didn't you?"

"Ah ha ha, I'm flattered you've got so much faith in a magician of my shining prominence. But! The reality is different from your naive wishes, Little Blue Eyes. I only-!"

Suddenly, an electric squeal cried out, almost as if in protest, for the world warped: the night transforming into something far more sinister. It was as if they had stepped into the twilight zone. Everything froze, truly. The distant fires, the rising plumes of smoke, the clouds in the night sky, and the waning moon; they all stopped. An unnatural evil glow seemed to emanate all around, painting the once finished, well kept building in an eerie varnish that ate away at the things men had made and crafted. Accelerated decay and erosion set in all around, and the landscape turned into a dilapidated slum, a haunting sight devoid of life that tore the courage from the human heart through the windows of the soul.

Nanohiko gasped, seething as he felt icy daggers of fear rip into his resolve. There was an overwhelming aura of menace in the air, suffocating, like the world was caving in on him. He did not like it at all. He hated it; this unreasonable...hostility.

Oddly, the foreigner boy, Chrono, did not seem perturbed in the slightest, ignoring even the crash from the hopelessly rusted bench collapsing in itself in a heap. He was on high alert, storming eyes scanning, with marked caution. "What the hell? A T.F.F.? Damn, talk about gloomy! Sure as a shotlancer it ain't mine. ..._tsk_, it's not like any spec that Yuuno showed me from the _Liber Goetia_, or the subcompact ones Chrono-_nii_ uses either... Geez, has it found a host already, or...?"

A feral scream cut through the night, reverberating through the many gutted buildings surrounding them. It seemed to come from all directions, and alas, Nanohiko felt even more of his courage drain away. Yes, it was a fantastic situation. Everything he had wished for, but with his life hanging in the balance, and no way to defend himself, except to flee, the boy felt so very helpless. The drama, the story, suddenly, was not so fun anymore.

"Ho? Here it comes, here it comes," smiled Chrono, wiping the staining blood from his mouth with the back of his sleeve.

How did he do it? Was he crazy? How could he be enjoying all of this? This...this-!

"GET DOWN!"

It happened in a split instant, the blue blur that was the foreign boy slamming into him, pushing Nanohiko away, before something else passed through the space he once occupied. Three whistling impacts rang out, and time was so slow, he swore he could see the wrench of pain surge across Chrono's snarling face, before...

_Flash_.

Flame.

White.

Smoke.

The shockwave of the explosion flattened him to the sidewalk. It probably was not that big, but Nanohiko felt his nose burning, perhaps it was bleeding, and his ears rang incessantly with a pitched whine. He was breathless; stunned. A perfect stranger had saved his life just like that... Why? Why did he do it?

The Takamachi boy struggled to his feet in the clearing smoke, coughing. Th-That Chrono...! He had better be all right! How else was he supposed to explain his condition to _Otou_-san and _Okaa_-san in the morning?

Fortunately (or unfortunately), he did not have a look far for a familiar irate cry came screaming from across the street, except it was several octaves higher... In fact, it sounded like a...

"I-**Idiot**! _Nincompoop_! Now, isn't the time to be spacing..._gah_. Damn, now, there goes the Glamour! I so should've taken it off during the fight. Me and my vanity; what a waste of good _mana_!"

...a girl's voice!?

"...wh-whu-WHAAaahhhhhhhhhh!? You're a Girl?!" Nanohiko spluttered in wide-eyed astonishment. He never spluttered!

Miraculously, Chrono...erm...Chrono-_chan_ was not in the slightest bit harmed, though she was _sans_ her overcoat, which had likely taken the brunt of the earlier attack. Nanohiko never heard of exploding clothes but he could believe the notion sincerely now that he had a living example in front of him. If they all survived the night, he would make a note to ask her why she wore explosive clothes in the first place, because did that not contradict the whole purpose of wearing anything at all?

"WHAAaahhhhhhhhhh?!" the girl hollered back, with an indignant shake of a balled fist. "ARE YOU A PRICKLESS PRETTYFLY?! DUH! TWO X CHROMOSOMES! SMELLS LIKE SUGAR 'N' SPICE, EVERYTHING NICE, AND _CHEMICAL X_! _**JYAAOO**_! BOOBS! BUSTLINE! HOURGLASS FIGURE! WAIST! HIPS! GIRLY PARTS! A SWEET DERRIERE! AND SILKY THIGHS! A thousand-percent satisfaction guaranteed, or I'll beat you down silly (made only in Mid-Childa)! BE-LIEVE IT!"

It was obvious her brush with death had not cooled down her spitfire tongue at all. With the overcoat gone though, Nanohiko saw that she was not entirely unarmed, for she wore a pair of high-tech looking metal bracers with plated shields.

"AH-uh-Wuh-whaa...HUUUUUUUUUHHHHHHHHHhhhuh!?"

"Don't just stand there lollygagging! Move it!" she shouted at him, "He's coming right-"

**TWHACK**!

"_**KID**_!"

S-Some-thing hit him -- this time, massive like a rhino or a bull; it just smashed him aside, disdainfully, a mere insignificant prop that happened to be in the way. He was airborne, hurtling beyond control, senses ablaze with pain.

"Slash Harken: _FAIA_!"

Twin sharp hydraulic hisses echoed forth, followed by meaty thuds, but he could hear the stampede of the thing's many scuttling footfalls still pounding forward unhindered.

"IMPULSE BITE!"

An electric crack pierced the din, as he returned to earth as well, breaking, flopping, and rolling finally to a stop a seemingly impossible distance from where he once stood. Something screamed, an inhuman chittering squeal, accompanied by a flash of bluish-white. The stench of burnt flesh and ozone propagated through the air faster than his hazy mind could possibly be bothered to comprehend, drowning in a sea of painkillers, agony, and denial.

The rush of running booted feet came and stopped beside him, with excited breaths, "C'mon, Little Blue Eyes! Stay with me on this."

It was a familiar presence at least, and it rolled him carefully on to his back, but with an equal sense of urgency over the continuing din of -- _something_ -- horrible in the background. The person was prodding and checking him presumably, muttering aloud in a clinical fashion, "Fractures. Incomplete Fracture for the _Humerus_. Bruising. Maybe internal bleeding. No splinters, I think. Good, nothing I can't fix." Satisfied, apparently so with the diagnosis of his condition; they took a deep breath before placing an open palm flat upon his sternum.

"Healing Sign: _FIRST AID_!"

A blue light enveloped him, and suddenly, Nanohiko felt wide awake, gasping, as if he had been dumped into a pool of freezing water. Bone, sinew, arteries, and veins; the boy could feel his entire body knitting itself back together into shape at speeds far exceeding what was considered human. It was a miracle, surely, for he was whole again, though it was an experience he would rather not repeat. However, there was little time for contemplation.

Sweating profusely, thirsty strangely, and more than just a little hungry, he was hauled up to his feet, with a familiar voice screaming at him:

"Get up..._ugh,_ get up! You're not allowed...to die, unless I say so, got it?! SUCK IT UP LIKE A MAN, DAMMIT!"

He seemed to be getting screamed at an awful lot today, which he hoped was not about to become something of a regular facet in his life.

"Ch-Chrono-san," Nanohiko addressed his savior, blinking. He was a touch out of it thanks everything that was happening so quickly. Moments ago, he practically thought he was dead, and yet now... "What did you...ah! You're-"

Chrono looked _horrible_, all the symptoms she had before (then apparently as boy) during her "red fever" had come back.

"Don't worry about me. **Here**: take it," the blue-haired girl brushed his self-evident concern off and roughly pressed something into his hands with her own bloodstained ones. It was a jewel of some kind; a perfect ruby, shaped into a sphere, with a most unusual brilliance and clarity that shined through even in the gloom of the nightmare world they were in.

"And RUN! I never thought I, _eh_-_hehehe_, the Marvelous Brave Chrono Lindy Harlaown, would sell her life like this... But the choice is between me, and this city, no, this entire planet. You have to make it! GO!"

By some inexplicable willpower, she turned away and began to march straight back the way she had ran from, coughing harshly into her hand that soon stained with fresh crimson.

"Run for your life! Don't look back! That Device, I can only hope you are a compatible Devicer. After that...heh, I guess it'll be up to you two to save the world! Don't you feel lucky, Little Blue Eyes? You're going to be a Hero! Now, RUN!"

It was obvious Chrono was going to her doom, swathed in the angry red veins again. The subtle tremor to her limbs and gait, and the unnaturally white pallor of her skin spoke volumes that she would not likely return, but how -- what manner of courage was this that she would be willing to bet so recklessly against such unreasonable odds? Madness. She had to be crazy!

Takamachi Nanohiko could not help but be angry and envious. Was this Kami-_sama_'s way of testing him, after granting his hopeful wish? Fine. Fine then, no more screwing around; it was time for him to get serious too. He would show her, and everyone watching who the hell he really was:

"Hey, _kisama_! That's IMPOSSIBLE! You're asking this one, this Takamachi Nanohiko-sama, to run away, without even trying to fight? On top of that, _urgh_, you want this Takamachi Nanohiko-sama to leave a hurt, tired girl to fight all by herself! An-And! It hurt me! That freaking, stupid, bl-black _thingie_!"

It was the first time he actually saw his assailant, and gosh, it was huge: some misshapen cross between a spider and a scorpion, blown up to the size of a white rhinoceros (and then some) that favored the armored chitin of the latter. Unlike a spider though, the head was a big, oblong articulated thing on a long flexible neck, revealing a slavering maw full of razor sharp teeth. The monster appeared a nightmarishly formidable beast that oozed an oily layer of darkness, like an aura, from its plated hide. Perhaps, nothing short of explosives or anti-tank weaponry would be able to stop such a thing.

"Don't joke with me; don't look down on me! I carry a soul within me too: a Warrior's Soul! And I'm going to get **even**, so tell me how to fight with this thing, Woman! That's why you gave it to me, didn't you?"

The incorrigible, impetuous girl from wherever, actually, stopped in her tracks. Nanohiko had to admit he was gladdened by the sight, and felt the tiniest hope she would acknowledge his resolve right there. Reality, though, was very much different from his expectations.

"_EHHHHH_!? Now, you show your balls because I am a girl, you chauvinist, conceited bastard?!"

What!?

"B-But, uh! If a girl, I mean, er...!" the boy, positively, flushed beet red at the unexpected slight from left field. He had not seen _that_ coming, definitely not; how on Earth can anyone be so...erm... Aren't people supposed to be grateful, especially in a crisis, when you offer them help?

"Mystra, YOU SUCK (and just when I thought you actually had some potential too)!" she snapped at him, her tone thuggish and disdainful, effectively ending at hope of him salvaging his dignity.

"J-J-Just tell me how!"

"Fine then, Wannabe-_sama_: focus! And ask for a pact! You already got the freaking potential because there's no other reason you'd be here, otherwise. The rest is up to **Her**, that snotty, prissy kid!"

Nanohiko _**blinked**_.

"Wha? H-Her?"

The black thing, no, the _monster_ at the end of the street howled and rose to its feet. It had finally recovered from whatever attack Chrono had used to disable it, earlier. He could not see her face, but he sensed a surge of emotion about her, for against all reason, the possibility of imminent death, the blue-haired girl became even more emboldened. She gave a loud, strong whoop impossibly, in spite of her weak condition, and broke into a sprint headlong, as she called back to him, cheerfully.

"Did I forget to mention Raising Heart's a girl too? Good luck, Little Blue Eyes! I'm going on ahead!"

To Nanohiko's horror, the monster, too, responded in kind, with a bone chilling screech that felt like hundreds of razor blades, shaving him alive to the bone. There was no time left. If he messed up this process of "_asking for a pact_", for which he had no training or experience at all, except for the somewhat words of encouragement from Chrono that such a thing was possible...they were both effectively dead meat.

"Ah! W-Wait a second... D-Damn it! Raising Heart, I am counting on you..."

It can't be helped, so to Hell with it: Let's Go for It! Together!

"So please, ANSWER ME!"

* * *

To be continued...

* * *

Author's Notes:

Heh heh. We're actually still going on with this.


	3. Chapter 3

* * *

Disclaimer:

Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha is the creative property of Seven Arcs, whom created this wonderful anime/manga series. Anything not attributed to Seven Arcs belongs to their respective owners, such as other series, references, and vice-versa. This story is written purely just for fun, guys; please for God's sake, don't sue us! We're just college students with too much free time on our hands! On the other hand, any specific author created characters we created for this fic (despite how unoriginal they may be at times) are ours. So without further ado, let's get on with the show!

The Surgeon General's Warning:

Read at your own risk.

* * *

**BE BORN**! / MANLY! MASKED! MAGICAL! GUY Nanohiko

Show me the way to you...!

Prologue 03:

Be Born! A Masked Magical Guy!

A Genderbending Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha AU fanfic co-produced by the evil genius of Tempest Dynasty and James "Ray" Edwards

* * *

It was hot; unbelievably hot! The heated kiss of flame caressed his exposed skin, passionately, in the surreal realm he found himself, so suddenly deposited in: a churning, twisting firestorm without end. Nanohiko would not have been surprised in the slightest if someone told him right now he was in Hell or had been beamed into the waves of the Sun. In fact, it was probably closer to the former, for he found himself standing on solid ground, that is if you could call the island of red hot coal flanked on either side by a river molten lava, such a thing. With his pitiable clothes, the boy danced frantically from foot to foot in a panic; his body and his brain at a war with each other between common sense and the shear sensory overload. Every inch of his body was fighting to survive, while his brain told him clearly he was good as dead.

"_Mou_, another one comes does it?" a woman's voice, deep and ethereal, echoed forth in the choking hot inferno.

Nanohiko's eyes watered, his throat and nostrils burning inside out from the firestorm.

"You _humans_ never change do you? _Hmph_. Answer me this: what is it you desire? Wait, no need to answer that, I already know the answer: **Power**. Isn't _that _right?

He did not want to die. He did not want it to end like this!

"And for what do you have a reason to live?" she asked him, with the same delicate disdain a hunter might spare for gutting a pig, alive.

He...! He did not know! It was just so tiring, boring living the same way, every day, and knowing it would be just that a routine to be repeated for the rest of his life. Change; he wanted to change. But for what? Just for the sake of changing?

"_Hmmm_, if you possess Power, will you be able to live?"

_Ugh_, it does not matter right now. Some-one... Someone... He needed to save that someone. The city. Everyone! The "Him" of yesterday does not matter right now. Change. Change! The "Him" of now must become the "He" of tomorrow!

The woman chuckled, a honeyed note playing in her voice, "Allow me a warning to you then, once you have drank from the _Origin_, you will never be able to live as a normal human, for that power will exclude you from all other humans. A different beginning, a different time, a different life... The power of a champion, _The Hero with a Thousand Faces_, will make you isolated, the object of love and hatred..."

The boy gasped, relief flooding his senses, when he felt a mysterious cooling touch settle over him.

"Your friends, your family, your loved ones, your comrades... All will be subject to fate, and perhaps, you will never be able to grasp them again, ever. Even so, can you live on bravely, so lonely?"

Nanohiko knew not how but a vision forced its way into his consciousness, depicting a scene sometime at dawn or dusk. There was a temple suspending, floating above the clouds in the sky, with everything bathed in golden sunlight. Amidst the temple, whose very form had been sundered and ravaged by some angry god, tearing open the roof and shattering columns , so there would be only ruin in his wake, stood a tall, broad shouldered figure garbed in a cloak. Raised high above on a dais before a great congregation, dressed similarly to him, he preached in a proud, strong voice that gripped the very world in fervor, saying:

"The Dissolution of the Record! Behold: We, a Useless Sword Forged Anew to Wage War Against the Gods! My Brethren, We Thunder to the Land of Beginnings...ONCE AGAIN!"

Just as suddenly, he found himself back in the red haze of the hellish inferno.

"A binding pact it shall be, under one condition: you will owe me a wish, a _geis_, I will collect some time, at a unknown juncture, an unforeseen date, in the future to come. If you are prepared for that, _Child of the Fool_, then..._saa_, say it, release me: _call my name_!"

--

_Red plasma standing amidst the ruins _

_A roaring man-machine, the incarnation of God _

_O_, _its holy name_!

_Swearing an eternal peace _

_Putting heart and soul together_,

_With a fist of steel_!

_With my soul_, _in full power _

_Burn them up_,

_With a Heart Breaker_!

_Until the horrifying darkness of this world is burned away_.

_I will sacrifice myself for love_!

--

Nanohiko's eyes flew open, everything became crystal clear: mind, body, and soul, like taking a breath of fresh air after having suffocated for so long. He felt alive, refreshed, more certain of purpose than he ever did before in his short life. Power, a vibrant life stream, as if he were awash in a great river, the boy experienced it for the first time in his life, awesome and magical; something he could never have dreamed living without in the first place, and to think it had always been right here, by side, all around him. How blind could he have been not to notice before?

No longer was he "Takamachi Nanohiko, the despot elementary school runt dreaming of that he cannot grasp with his own two hands". He had changed, become something new, better, stronger; his time had come at last. The power was with him, the resonance of his "soul" and the "gem", creating a fantastic electric dynamo that burned brighter and hotter by the second.

Nanohiko shouted, "Raging Heart! BURN UP!"

_Ready_: _Go_!

"_Henshin_!"

Things were going to change, beginning with this very moment!

--

The Marvelous Brave did not bother to look back, when she felt the explosive shockwave of an immense concentration of _mana_ being "ignited" all at once. She was much more concerned, with trying keep her already horrible sense of balance level, thanks to her own stubborn recklessness. _Linker Burnout _was a serious reverse feedback phenomenon most _magi_ never had to worry about, since they were lacking in the balls department to ever master themselves, truly. Now, the enforcer did not think of herself to be a true master _yet _in the art of pushing one's own limits to and beyond "the knife's edge", but she could vouch confidently she was better than a majority of the commissioned officers, enlisted, and contract mages in service today.

Read: she was just that much more crazy and foolhardy than the rest of those sensible salarymen.

In any case, it was quite a lucky break the backwater bumpkin, civilian kid managed to form a pact, with Raging Heart. She knew he had the potential to be a mage for sure, or otherwise, he would not have heard her S.O.S. broadcast. The multi-OS on that Intelligent Device was unbelievably queer and had rejected every candidate so far, and the young lieutenant wondered frankly just what "Mad Doc" Professor Rakshata Chawla was thinking building a device like it. Then again, the same mad woman built Chrono's own device, so she should not be one to gripe about good sense and sanity.

Whatever, thought the girl, brushing her ruminations aside, with a toothy grin. We might manage to do more than survive; we can win against this _Jewel Beast_.

The problem: the greenhorn kiddy made the mistake of performing his first transformation right in FRONT of the enemy! What an idiot! Even the messed up spider-scorpion-alien thingie was smart enough to figure he posed a very serious and imminent threat to its existence. She was the only thing standing between it and him, and right now, she wanted to really, really, really just puke and pass the hell out.

Backlit by the roaring red inferno of transforming "flame" behind her, Lieutenant Chrono Lindy Harlaown resolved she was going to the beat the snot out of the farmboy kid when she was not feeling under the weather. In the meantime, it was high time to get that evil, ugly, nasty, abominable bastard's attention, before it could act:

"S-_Slash Har_-_ken_..." the girl rasped out, with a grimace of concentration, as she coaxed her "wounded" Linker Core back into action. For what felt like an eternity, the mage reached out with her will, grabbing a hold of a metaphorical auxiliary power crank and ratcheting it up over and over. Chrono was praying for a miracle, for the beautiful lights of the glass cockpit displays to come back to life, while her own body rebelled and protested, burning hotter; the enflamed magic circuits blazing an angry molten red.

Fainting seemed to be a really good idea about now, as she felt honestly that she was going to burst into flames, not a pleasant way to die at all. Fortunately, the Goddess of Luck seemed to want her to struggle to live for a few more precious minutes: a thin silver of blue flitted across the sea of lava. Instantly, the slash harken on her right gauntlet hissed open, ready to fire.

Her perception of time returned to normal as the Jewel Beast give a chittering screech and scuttled forwards in a surging, almost bounding stride down the street. Clumps of dark asphalt were flung left and right in the enormity of its wake, but Chrono was not intimidated in the slightest, only tired. With Herculean effort, straining, she propped up her armed forearm and took aim, ignoring the beast's imminent approach. Its merciless beady black eyes were not looking at the enforcer but right through her at the kid behind her some twenty or so strides away.

Well, she would just have to teach it a lesson for daring to make light of her:

"EAT THIS!"

The mage fired at point blank range, flinching not against the squealing fury of the monster's breath, and struck it dead on in the head. The Jewel Beast reeled, swinging its pincers and stinger-laden tail wildly, as it legs gave out underneath from the sudden paralyzing shock of the blow. Amazingly, the recoil from her attack also knocked Chrono back to the pavement, narrowly saving her from being clipped by the flailing extremities. A cacophonous crash rewarded her ears a moment later; the Jewel Beast having taken out the front side of a store, over her shoulder to the left side of the street.

Great, she managed to buy Little Blue Eyes some more time, but now, Chrono was also effectively out of the game. Should she even bother to get up? It was stupid but her pride refused to allow her to die lying on her back in the middle of a battlefield. Besides, she wanted to see her handiwork.

Slowly, compounded by the protests of her newly bruised back, she rolled onto her stomach and rose up from all fours, like a newborn learning to walk for the first time, to stand. It was nice to see the store had been totaled. What was not nice was to see the Jewel Beast pulling itself out of the twisted wreckage and clattering debris, and locking its baleful gaze onto her.

"Hi th, there, _BIG FUGLY_!" Chrono wheezed out, with a wicked smile. Oh, she could use some cough drops big time after this was over; all her awesome screaming was killing her and her throat. "Did...hah, ya _miss _me?"

Of course, what happened next was expected: it gave a clicking chitter and surged forwards, pincers reaching out to crush her or wrench her around or smash her or...

"_**YAI**_**-**_**YAI**_! GET _SHIRIASU_!"

An impossibly loud, over-the-top voice cried out over the roar of a sudden explosion.

"_BUREIVAAAA_! _STRRRRRRAAAAAAIIIIIIGHHHT_!"

The impact: a flaming red comet rocketed by slamming into the unawares side of the Jewel Beast, a complete blind side that not only smashed it back, but also igniting the oily dark aura that surrounded it. Crashing, rolling backwards quite an impressive distance away, a horrendous shrieking cacophony erupted, as the spider-scorpion abomination writhed and flailed on the road, trying to put out the blaze. Chrono had to admit she was kind of impressed, though out of common sense, she backed away from the huge fireball settling to the pavement abreast to her that was taking the shape more so of a human torch.

"_Chou Saikou Tatakai Yuusha_: I arrive! Masked Rider - **BRAVER**!"

With a flourishing pose, the flames gave way in a sparkle of embers and sparks, revealing the newly born "Brave". The backwater kid at least had the good sense to go with a high-tech suit of power armor, no doubt a good balance of power, defense, and mobility, rather something ridiculous, like a "cloth style" sailor uniform (though that has its own merits). Bearing an obvious theme of that of a heroic "White Knight", the articulate Barrier Jacket sported primarily a pure white body with a blue trim, and a black under trim for the more flexible "body glove" areas.

Silver adorned studs and the casing around the white-like shield plate in the center of the breastplate, which bore a large glowing ruby gem shaped into a perfect orb, the size of a fist, embedded into it. A smaller ruby orb was also tessellated similarly onto his belt, while even more of these jewel worthy rubies, now cut like diamonds, adorned the plates on his forearms, fists, thighs, and calves. Chrono suspected they had something to do with Raging Heart herself.

Gold found its way into the intricate workings of the belt, likely a regulator of some sort, and provided a trim on his white shoulder pauldrons too. The most prominent bearer of the goldwork was the inverted "T" shaped faceplate on his helmet, which bore another ruby diamond on its forehead. His visor was a "Y" shaped silhouette the resembled a bird spreading its wings as it flew away that blaze blue. As he cooled down, blue turned to black, and the faceplate split open, creating a kind of demonic crown-like mask, and revealing the glowing red dual-eye visual sensor "eyes" that no doubt fed data to his HUD inside the padded interior of the helmet.

With the long scarf of crimson that hung from his shoulders billowing viciously in the faint breeze, as if it had a life of its own, the phrase "White Devil", suddenly, seemed oddly appropriate. The Barrier Jacket was a few sizes bigger than him, making him taller and more massive than he was as a mere boy. Truly, he seemed larger than life and ready to take on anything the world could throw at him...much like her own big brother.

Chrono smiled -- just a little.

"Hmmm, that's a decent Barrier Jacket to start off with... Nice accessories... Nifty motif... Your fighting spirit ain't bad... But the colors..._hmm_. I'll give you a sixty-one out of one-hundred Gurren Shades for that. Bad to so-so, yeah?"

Just as planned, the oldest trick in the "newbie hero-wannabe teasing" book worked, and the newly born "rider", Braver, gave an agonized squawk, his arms and knees bent into a laughable exaggerated expression of incredulity. Ah, she should have known picking on rookies was so much fun.

"A SIXTY?!" he cried, mortification evident in his new digitized "manly" tone, before slumping over in a blue depression. It was undeniable proof that though he spoke with the voice of a grown man, he was still a growing boy at heart. "And I tried so hard too..."

"_Master_, _the Target._ _ Is_ _still. Active_," Raging Heart spoke up, chiding him, gently.

Chrono noted the picky Intelligent Device spoke in an especially slow and emphatic manner, robotic, almost stilted really compared to her own device, its "Twin", who was almost disturbingly too human. How curious; she ought to try and satisfy her curiosities, but right now, she had best follow common sense and get out of the way. Down the street, the clamor had died down and the Jewel Beast was struggling back up to its feet, frothing at the mouth and snarling. Clearly, it was pissed off.

"Oh, looks like your new big scaly, ugly friend is calling; go on ahead, have fun! I'm going to go strut on to that hey-bench over there and take a nap; wake me up sometime after it's over, Little Blue Eyes."

"WHAT!?" Braver squawked at her nonchalance that seemed wholly inappropriate in light of the grave situation. However, to his credit, he put his ego and comebacks aside for later in order to focus on the immediate task. She would look forward to messing with his head some more afterwards, certainly, but for now...

_Good luck, kiddo_.

--

Nanohiko was infuriated. He could not believe the nerve of that foreign girl. What a totally insufferable person, and she was not the slightest bit apologetic about it either! Just what was he supposed to do to get her to acknowledge him? Or was this her way of testing him or something?

The spider-scorpion monster -- _thing_ -- was happy to interrupt his thoughts, with another chittering shriek, forcing his bristling ego back to the task at hand. Grimacing in disgust, Nanohiko took a stance, breathing deeply, and gathered his fiery emotions, tempering them into a sharp focus. He could feel the power flowing in his veins, responding to the call of his heart. The crimson scarf around his neck began to hiss and sizzle, turning red and molten, from the rapid concentration of energies; a process mirrored upon his newly cast armor as well.

"Let's go, Raging Heart: FULL POWER!" the boy addressed his partner, "we'll decide it -- IN ONE MOMENT!"

Ignition: the masked hero burst into glorious flame, like a phoenix reborn, rising from the ashes. His eyes blazed blue through the inferno! The time to decide the destiny had come; his era began, **now**.

"Hey, you messed up, confused monster, prepare yourself: it's a head-on, full frontal duel. HERE I COME!"

Braver broke into a dead sprint, each mighty footfall leaving scorching red footprints in the asphalt, as he surged forwards, searing the cool air with contrails of heat and smoke. The beast, displaying an uncharacteristic intelligence that belied its abominable condition, made no attempt to effuse itself once more with its sickly dark aura. Instead, it opted to fight fire with a vengeance, rearing up its great tail, the stinger on the end twisting open, like a blooming flower, to reveal a bank of gleaming ebon spines.

"That kind of useless, delaying attack won't work on me. Look! The flame of a Man's soul, his resolve: BRAVER BLAZER!"

Just as the spine bank fired with a whistling volley, the masked hero transformed, roaring forth into a great streaking bolt of fire. Now airborne, moving faster than before, He was an all consuming fireball, melting the road underneath his unstoppable wake. Just as he said, the deadly spines were hardly but a trifle to him, melting on approach and splattering useless to the ground a moment later. Hindered by its bulk and the tight quarters, the monster made a desperate swipe with both crushing pincers, hoping to at least save its main body from the imminent danger it sensed.

An awesome flashing explosion of red and orange rocked the block, shattering windows and ripping out tiles from the sidewalks near the epicenter of the blast. Emerging out of the smoke and dust first came the Jewel Beast, missing both arms, the remaining stumps cauterized by the intense heat of combustion. Its entire carapace was sizzling but it had survived, scuttling out backwards in a moaning daze.

However, it was far from alone.

"A careless **opening**! You're mine: _HISSATSU_ - DEADLY! BRAVER! _UPPAHHHH_!"

Braver darted out in a flaming blur and suckered in an uppercut; the impact, an ear-splitting shockwave, sickening with a wrenching crunch, for his fist broke straight through the chitinous abominable open maw and into the roof its mouth. The fearsome fangs and bone were no match for his strength, shattering and splintering, as the Jewel Beast gave one last keening death knell...

"_HIITO ENDO_!"

...and spontaneously combusted. The scourging flames of crimson erasing its vile hulking presence from existence, until all that remained were but steaming ashes and embers. His fiery fighting spirit subsiding, the masked hero stood alone, unopposed, the last one, and the undoubted victor. Lo, Nanohiko straightened, standing tall, and brought his knuckle clenched fist to his heart, before punching proudly at the nightmarish sky, shouting:

"Victory belongs to the Courageous; my time has come, and so have I!"

"_My Master. Primary objectives. Still remain_," Raging Heart chided him abruptly.

The boy staggered, as if he had been struck, barely holding back the urge to perform a face plant right there. As if emulating his mood, the audacious crimson scarf lost its vitality and flopped down limply against his back. Nanohiko just did not understand. What was it and girls tonight trying to rain on his parade? Is this not the part where everyone should be congratulating him and calling him a hero?

"_Please_. _Recover_ _the Artifact_. _And_. _Egress_. _Temporal Force Field_. _Abnormal_. _Destabilizing_. _Reality_ _Crash_ _estimated_ _in_: _two minutes, fifteen seconds_. _Hurry_."

"Uwah, Raising Heart sure uses some difficult words..." Nanohiko sweated.

"_One minute_, _fifty-five seconds_."

"Gah, it was a joke!"

"_One minute_, _fifty-two_."

"Okay, okay; I'm looking! I'm looking! Wait..._anou_, where should I start? And what am I looking for anyway?"

"_Unable to comply_. _Alternative Plan_. _My Master_. _Please_. _Recover_. _Lieutenant Harlaown_. _And_. _Egress_. _That is all_."

Nanohiko would have protested but he sensed, bizarrely, an emotion in the droning, purposeful monotone of the device that stated she did not want to be questioned. The situation was all so strange, so new to him that he did not know any way to respond, save for to obey. He had won, had he not? So why did Raging Heart sound..._disappointed_?

"_Mmm_, a bonfire, kinda reminds me of home. I'll give you a seventy-nine Gurren Shades for that. You pass, for today."

The masked hero gawked at the dozing girl in his arms, as he leapt from rooftop to rooftop in the still calm of night. Just as she said she would, Chrono had gone to sleep. Yet even absorbed in the powerful feeling of being so superhuman, taking leaps and bounds, the wind in his face, never more in his life did Nanohiko feel like crying from someone giving him a compliment. It was perfect bittersweet blend of happiness and feeling pathetic utterly. How could he put her words for him on such a high pedestal? They had only just met, and in a way, she reminded him of Arisa, that flame-like personality, except in Chrono-san's case, it was like -- she was fishing with her words?

Sigh.

_Kami_-_sama_, what an uncute girl, but is that part of her charm points...?

* * *

To be continued...

* * *

Author's Notes:

HENSHIIINNNN!


	4. Chapter 4

* * *

Disclaimer:

Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha is the creative property of Seven Arcs, whom created this wonderful anime/manga series. Anything not attributed to Seven Arcs belongs to their respective owners, such as other series, references, and vice-versa. This story is written purely just for fun, guys; please for God's sake, don't sue us! We're just college students with too much free time on our hands! On the other hand, any specific author created characters we created for this fic (despite how unoriginal they may be at times) are ours. So without further ado, let's get on with the show!

The Surgeon General's Warning:

Read at your own risk.

* * *

**BE BORN**! / MANLY! MASKED! MAGICAL! GUY Nanohiko

Show me the way to you...!

Prologue 04:

The Morning After Feels like a Hangover?

A Genderbending Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha AU fanfic co-produced by the evil genius of Tempest Dynasty and James "Ray" Edwards

* * *

Nanohiko Takamachi, age nine (well, nine and a third, and getting older by the second), felt terrible, and it was not because of the time-honored traditional Kanagawa prefecture summer heat wave (the new school year had just started, so there was still some time before _that _ugly business). He was sore. Tired. Hungry. Sweaty. Salty. Thirsty. And that ear piercing scream first thing in the morning was **not **helping his splitting headache. _Kami_-sama, it was Sunday! Sunday! The day of rest according to any Judeo-Christian derived religion, and of course, in modern Japan, the one day he did not have to go to school, which aside from organized religion, was the number one institution responsible for aggravating his boredom.

Oh, and what's that noise? Oh! Thank you for starting a stampede first thing in the morning too! Holy Buddha, it sounds like hail stones bouncing off his skull.

The boy growled, turning over on the much adored family couch. This was not his idea of a pleasant Sunday morning after a long night out at all. Oh no, he wanted to sleep in right now, right here on the couch in the living room, dozing his day away. NOISE was unacceptable. Especially when he had been obligated to give up his bed too and...

Hey, wait a minute. Didn't that scream come from upstairs? It sounded like his mother too. Which means.......oh, crispy _tonkatsu_!

Nanohiko bolted up with a sweat, his senses rebooting and becoming aware at last of the general hubbub gripping his home. It was not a good eight o'clock in the morning, to say the least, catching a glimpse of his elder brother marching upstairs, no doubt to join his father. Everything would have been fine at that, for he was willing to feign sleep right back onto the couch, but Miyuki caught him, from where she was peeking out from the dining room herself.

"Chibiko?" his dear sister blinked in surprise, invoking _that_ dreaded nickname he so loathed.

"Not Chibiko! And keep it down!" Nanohiko hissed back.

She deflated visibly, her almost comically huge two-point glasses misting over in an exaggerated sulk, "B-But...but it sounds cuter."

"A man's name is not supposed to sound cute, _Onee_-san!" he was not falling for her feminine wiles today. Sometimes he had to wonder what were his parents thinking when they named him? Could they not have thought of something cooler like "Ryuusei" (lit. _shooting star_) or Kenshirou for his name instead?

"O~kay, but, _huhuhuhu_, if you're down here," Miyuki intoned impishly, "who's up there?"

The ruckus upstairs died at that line of questioning, leaving an intense silence. Nanohiko knew the cat was out of the bag, and the honest thing to do was tell his elder sister exactly what happened, but --- who in the world would believe the fantastic tale he had to tell? A few would but his folks and siblings were straight to the point, down to the earth realists, except for his mother; she had something of a work-in-progress childhood going on. _Okaa_-san still believed in many things, like little green men and UFOs, a blissful naivety, for she, the young at heart, and a pox to her spouse and older children, who must step in as the voice of common sense. The various _unique_, or otherwise, outrageous goodies and drinks available daily at the Midori-ya as the Mysterious Green Magic Special were all her pride and joy that the stranger and weirder could enjoy, each to their own. Though, a small word of warning for the foolhardy or courageous: the Mysterious Green Magic Special is not fit for the consumption of all human stomachs.

Eat at your own risk, that is all.

Now, the billion yen question of the hour is, how was Nanohiko supposed to fool his insufferably sharp elder sister,_ Death Glasses_ Miyuki (read: don't ever call her that to her face!)? Try as he might he could not help but frown and tear up when he considered the options. His honorable father, Shirou Takamachi, is a former body; therefore, a strict realist with a touch paranoia on the unhealthy scale, according to every day salarymen, a trait which both his elder children have inherited as well. He could smell a lie from one and half kilometers (three on a rainy day) away, again a trait passed on to Miyuki and Kyouya too, so as such, the actual act of lying become something of an art form and matter of personal vanity in the Takamachi household.

The expression round here went: "Never let it be said that a Takamachi lied." (_We only just happened to omit certain facts that were not specified in clear, written, binding language AKA a "contract"_.)

Nanohiko was a terrible liar, a fact that he blamed on his youth. Rarely did he ever manage to get away with anything, and so the boy gave up on trying to play "the game" altogether. The truth was out of the question, no duh. He needed a spin, that special blend of sweet mercury to act like a million dollar heart throb boy band to a raging, hormonally unbalanced teenage girls, meaning instant euphoria. What would a high school girl like his big sister, full of merry and mischief by the way, be interested in...

Oh.

Oh!

Oh ho ho ho!

Arisa (of the Burning) was going to kill him for this, if (and this a big IF) she ever finds out. Licking his lips, and feigning great consternation, which he noted seemed to make Miyuki-_nee_'s glasses suddenly flare up with mad glee, the boy confessed his "_sins_":

"_A-Anou_, d-don't tell any-one about this okay?"

"Oh really now, _Chi-bi-ko_?" said the cat to the canary at her window.

"Rrrghhh... C-Contract! Contract!! You absolutely, definitely, can't tell anyone-_nano da yo_! ...I-I'd die of embarrassment, _Onee_-san."

"That depends if I like what you've got to say," she crept up closer to the couch.

"No Contract! No Talkie! Contract! Talkie! _Hai_?"

"Alright, alright, I give --- just this _once_. After all, for our favorite _Chibiko_ to make heist in the middle of the night sounds pretty juicy to my _Rumor Sense_, _fufufu_!"

Now, Nanohiko prayed **hard** that Arisa never found out, "W-Well, you see..."

"Uh~huh?"

"You know...Arisa and Suzuka, right?"

"O _really _no~w?"

"Erm, you know how Bannings-san is really pushy, right?"

"Uh-huh! Uh-huh!"

"Well, she couldn't wait for today, so she kinda started our Sunday early last-"

"_Kyaaaaaaann_! Say no more!" Miyuki squealed like a fangirl and struck a **mighty** pose! "Oh, I am so proud of you, Our Favorite Chibiko! You're finally taking your first steps as a man. Do not fear, my young little brother; _Onee_-san will support you all the way, and guide you to the hearts of young girls far and wide! A thousand-percent satisfaction guaranteed for Doctor Strange-Love Miyuki is on the case!"

Nanohiko sweated. ".........wha...." He had been expecting a reaction, but nothing like this... Where on Earth was that bright light shining behind his older sister coming from, bright as the sun? And when did Mount Fuji get there in the background!? Last time he checked, they were not anywhere near Mount Fuji!

"Now, quick! Into the shower with you!" she ordered him, shoving a finger onto his nose, much to the boy's discomfort. There was an inexplicable light shining in her glasses, which he imagined could only be an omen of doom. "You --- _sniff_ --- **stink**, and today is going to be a busy-busy-busy day, _fufufu_! And, hey, don't be worrying your silly head over nothing, you hear? I'll bring you a change of clothes and smooth things over with _Oyaji_ and Kyouya, and when you come out, I'd better be smelling soap and deodorant young man!"

Well, at least, his neck was off the chopping block, for now.

* * *

Some Englishman with funny hair and even funnier clothes said it best: "To be or not to be, that is the question." Mom had been revived in time to join them all for breakfast, via smelling salts, and confessed sheepishly at the table, much to the frustration of his father and siblings that she could not recall at all what it was that had disturbed her so. A lilting laugh, though, ended any possible inquiry, to Nanohiko's relief, for she told off her husband and children not to worry for if it was something important, she would remember it sure enough when the time came. The rest of the morning had passed by without incident, thanks to whatever magic Miyuki had cast upon the eyes and ears of _Otou_-san and Kyouya-_nii_san.

Whatever it might be, the youngest son of the Takamachi household just prayed it would not be anytime soon. His chores and other filial obligations fulfilled for the day, Nanohiko politely excused himself to make his rendezvous with two _zaibatsu_'s heiresses at a nearby playground. Well, it was not really nearby so much as halfway between all their houses and their elementary school; hence, Arisa decided it to be their designated meeting spot, for all manner of occasions.

Considering the clear, open blue sky, and the lack of chirping cicadas, it was no surprise to find the playground populated by the hustle and ambience of young families and their pets on a pleasant Sunday outing. The sun was high in the sky for it was noon; temperatures easy with a playful breeze to keep things cool. Under strict advice from Miyuki-_nee_ (after she forced him to spill the beans on today's activities), Nanohiko had worn conservative, casual clothes to suit the weather, and not so much to impress. It would be his personality, according to her that would win the day, but never fear for her would have plenty of chances to show off his "fashionable senses" once the _sakura_ bloomed!

The boy felt bad for deceiving his elder sister, but since she seemed to be enjoying her delusions so much, he felt it best to leave her to them. It ought to buy him enough time to ascertain the truth, namely:

"Was last night a dream? Or did I really fight?"

Nanohiko sighed, glancing over the kids playing on the swings. He envied how they laughed, so carefree, ignorant of any limitations, and whooping in delight to go higher and faster, for once he had been a bright eyed child like that, too.

"That seems like such a long time ago; guess this just means I grew up sooner than most kids."

In any case, running a hand through his auburn hair, the important thing to do now was to find some physical evidence, and the boy decided that Arisa's outing this afternoon would be a suitable cover to satisfy his curiosity just fine. Human memory, after all, was unreliable. Written records and the human heart are subject to distortion, for the former is a snap shot frozen in time while the latter is revised nigh constantly by fickle emotion.

Nanohiko would have preferred to have a video recording of the entire event, not to mention something physical he could grasp and fiddle around with his hands. How he wished he had his own digital camera at a time like this... Then again, a camera might be overkill, since he did have a "souvenir" on his person, right now.

"Geez, I really don't know if boys ought to be wearing charm bracelets," the boy murmured, staring dubiously at the new accessory on his right wrist as if it were diseased. It was not anything offensive, just a set of intertwining links made to resemble a series of infinity loops, color: metal, and what the chain link held was a single perfect ruby. He could not explain it, but he sensed a most uncanny presence in the gem, and under the right light, well, its "soul" seemed to light ablaze with its own fire.

Now, for the other question of the hour: where in the world was Arisa and Suzuka? The former always made it a point that he as the boy had to be on time, by the dot, no matter what, because boys had no good excuses to be late; the latter interpreted to him that simply he should be a few minutes early for safety's sake.

_Whhfff-THWACK_!

Nanohiko staggered, a pitiful note of whimpering escaping his lips, as his thoughtful consternation to a turn down "Owww! Why me?" street. With a hand clamped over, favoring his aching noggin', he became aware of the object, a Frisbee(?!), that assailed him clattering on the ground slowly to a stop. Laughter, a whole chorus of it made things obvious that the little kids across the way had seen it happen and were now getting a laugh at his expense too.

Kids these days; don't they know...

"NA-NO-_BO-KE_~!"

Oh _Kami_-sama, he recognized that voice from anywhere. It was Arisa Bannings --- not Arisa, Class Rep Arisa, or Arisa-_ojou_ --- but _Burning _Arisa of the "Are You Okay? BUSTAA WOLF!" variety. Nanohiko had a bad feeling about this, and it did not help she was bearing down on him with full force practically seething flame from her cerulean eyes.

"Private Takamachi! Do you _know _what time it is?" said the blonde-haired heiress scathingly, arms akimbo in her "Sunday Best": namely, jeans, T-shirt, khaki vest, and sunglasses. Her intent was to be casual and fit as much as possible with the plebeians, so to speak, though with Arisa's fiery tomboy temperament, he suspected no form of camouflage could possibly mask her ego.

"Uhhh..."

"I've been trying to call you over for ten full minutes, _boke_!"

Wincing, Nanohiko shied away some as the girl leaned over to shout in his face, invading his personal space. He knew better than to give ground to Arisa but he never did much like raising his voice for trivial things, nor did he want to run the risk of hurting her feelings either. "S-Sorry, I guess, um, that means I get to do the punishment game, don't I, Arisa-_iincho_?"

"That's Arisa-_gundanchou_ to you, Mister!" she declared proudly, leaning back and puffing out her bosom, arms akimbo.

...Brigade Commander Arisa?

"Today's going to be the start of a brand new era, Takamachi! For I have decided that we will form a club unlike any other before it."

"...come again?"

"I call it: the Gurren Brigade!" Arisa pumped a fist excitedly into the air, "an association dedicated to saving the world by overloading it with fun, and I, Vice-Commander Suzuka, and you-_boke_ are the founding members!"

She's totally not listening to me, thought Nanohiko with a helpless sigh. Once, Alisa Bannings got worked up about something there was nothing that could stop her. But did that make her a hot-blooded idiot, or was he the hot-blooded idiot for going along with her anyways?

_Sigh_.

"So what's-"

He was cut off when Arisa grabbed him, with great gusto, by the hand and lead him away, the action so sudden that Nanohiko nearly tripped in shock.

"Don't worry; don't worry, and enough, boring talk. Now's the time for action and you, _private_, owe the Vice-Commander and I --- ICE CREAM! Onwards to the Gurren-_dan_ Heel and Toe Express!"

Wait a second, why was he the only "private"?! Wait! H-Hey! Hold up!

"This is definitely not cool-_nano da yo_..." the boy cried manly tears as he gave up any further protest.

Yes, there was no doubt now --- he was the idiot, after all.

* * *

Two weeks went by...

A full two weeks where Nanohiko Takamachi did not find himself bored for a change. Instead, the dissatisfied nine-year-old found experienced something far more trouble; Brigade Commander Arisa was running him ragged. Day in and day out, for the Gurren-_dan_ met every day after school, including cram school (ugh, the inhumanity!), _ahhhhh_, he felt like dying. And worse, the boy had found no further evidence to verify the reality of his wandering feelings. Perhaps...

"_Aaaa_, maybe, it really was just a dream-_na-no da-yo_," Nanohiko sulked, lounging out lazily on the park bench.

"What was just a dream, Hiko-kun?"

The last thing he had been expecting on a quiet Sunday was to come face of face, literally almost nose to nose, Suzuka Tsukimura-_ojou_san, all of a sudden --- WHAT!

"B, Buh! Tsu-Tsuki-mura-_ojou_!"

"_Arara_, weren't we on a first name basis?" she tilted her head aside, much like a quizzical kitten.

Hey, hey, did she not realize the close intimate space of his she was presently violating? Why at this close range, one misstep and it would surely lead to a k, k, k-_kissu_! Oh man, oh no! How many people were watching? He bet it totally looked like a kiss! Gah! Please, _Kami_-sama Almighty, do not let Arisa be somewhere near by...!

"Er, um, not first-_first_ name, but... S-Suzuka-san! Don't you think you're a little too close? People could be watching!"

"Oh, there's no one here besides my bodyguards, right now, Hiko-kun!" Suzuka admitted openly with a smile.

Gwahhh! What? Oh no, oh no; this was a level-AAA crisis. If he did think of something smart real fast that would not send the wrong messages, surely, the companionable friendship Nanohiko had shared with the girls since the hey-days of kindergarten would be all for naught!

"Ah."

But, would that be such a bad thing? He was the idiot always gripping about the lack of change and excitement in his life. Right here, was an opportunity to begin exploring the relationship between himself and...no. No. No. No! It... Ack, now was not the right time; they were too young, and they were his only friends! There was no way Nanohiko would let some crazy boy-girl relationship come between and tear them apart.

"Ah?" she blinked, thankfully oblivious of his thoughts.

"Hey, Suzuka-san, don't you think our faces are a little too close?" the Takamachi boy played tough, mustering the most suave "Honest and Cool" aura he could manage.

"Really? But, Hiko-kun's face is so cute when it's red! What are you thinking about-_de kashira_?"

Fuh---This girl totally cannot read the mood! Nanohiko felt like crying at the hopelessness of the situation. What did he have to do to make this innocent "_ojou_-sama" understand the dire circumstances they were in, and the trouble they could get into if someone were to misunderstand the situation? And, hey, shouldn't she be cutting it out with that close nickname for him?

"P, Please, just sit down, Suzuka-san. It's public property, after all."

"Why, thank you. I didn't want to impose on you," Suzuka beamed at him.

Oh yes, the boy could feel the invisible tears, like waterfalls, streaming down his cheeks, as he prayed to _Kami_-sama that Arisa-_jou_chan or anyone else would not stumble upon the "happy" predicament. Why he bet his situation could even be misconstrued for --- what's the word -- e-e-lope-ment?

Nanohiko sighed, inwardly. He was surely doomed and what was that heavenly smell wafting up...?

"Con~grat~ulations, a reward, Takamachi Nanohiko-_dono_!"

Presented to him by the radiant smile of one Suzuka Tsukimura was lunch in a timeless (and no doubt expensive), compact, black-lacquered bento box that had been wrapped in a violet _furoshiki_, with a kittens and cats print pattern. What a feast it was: Hayashi rice, _hamu katsu_, and assort roll sushi, such culinary prowess, as expected of a "_Yamato Nadeshiko_ _Ojou_-sama"! Artful and enticing, just staring at it made his stomach growl.

"F, For me? Wh, why?" the boy mumbled wide-eyed in a daze. Come to think of it, he was feeling down right famished about now.

Suzuka giggled daintily, pleased by his favorable reaction to say the least. "I thought it was well deserved to thank Hiko-kun for all the hard work he's done, since the brigade was born."

"Ah, er... Thanks, I think."

"_Mou_, you do not have to be so reserved. Even I think we are imposing on you a bit much, but, ah! please, don't be mad; she really does mean well!"

Eh?

"She, _etou_, we agreed to the brigade because we thought we could make a real club out of it next year, and take it all the way into high school. A brigade isn't much with just three people, but once we get more people to join, then...it'd be more fun, _ne_?"

Nanohiko blinked, "Suzuka-san, did you and Arisa-_jou_ make this brigade for me?"

"Y, Yes..." admitted the violet-haired girl in red-faced embarrassment. "I did not want to agree to it, but lately, Hiko-kun just seemed to grow sadder, with a far, far away look in his eyes."

"A far, far away look? Me? ...Eh-_heh_, you've got to be imagining things, Suzuka-san."

"...ah."

"Well, it's true I've been occupied lately with something on my mind, but it's not like I'm sad or anything."

"Is, is that so-_de kashira_?"

"Yup, I wanted to confirm something."

"Confirm?"

"But, you know, you two really are good to me. I think --- probably --- I'll give up on it, now. It'd be bad to worry Arisa-_jou_ and Suzuka­-_ojou_san anymore."

"W, wait, what? Wh, what are you talking about, Hiko-kun?" Suzuka reared back a touch, and all red in the face by the boy's unusual sentimentality.

"Would you believe if I told you that I got _this_ in a dream?"

Lifting the sleeve of his shirt, Nanohiko all smiles and cheer presented the object of his fascination: the charm bracelet that had since become a part of his person, though no one noticed. He wore it every day, without fail, an act that became habit swiftly, and today, the lone perfect ruby was as magnificent as ever, gleaming crimson in the sunlight.

"I know, I know, not the sort of thing you'd expect on a boy, but you have to admit it's darn pretty, Suzuka...eh?"

Out of the blue, Suzuka Tsukimura stood up and turned away from him, as if to hide her expression. Their congenial atmosphere had turned cold, the rustle of leaves audible in the faint wind.

"S, Sorry, I just remembered I had an appointment to make," she spoke hesitantly, raising a few flags in his head.

Naturally, the Takamachi boy assumed he was in the wrong. "Tsu, Tsukimura-san, did I-"

"N-No, I j, just have to go. Se, see you!"

Just like that, with those abrupt parting words, the heir to the Tsukimura _zaibatsu_ fortune left in a hurry, leaving a heavy ornery weight on his own shoulders. Doubt assailed him with ridiculous accusations of impropriety and boorish behavior unbecoming of a young man to be, such as he, yet another side of him defended his character as staunchly. There was no evidence to say Takamachi Nanohiko was guilty of any trespass. Why he had done everything in the book not to stray off the golden mean. Yes, he had thoughts, but he not acted on such base impulses!

"Tsk, man, everything has been messed up, since I met that annoying guy!"

"_Aghhhh_, it's too bright and early...and, hey! who's annoying? Huh? Huh? HUH!? You got a problem, brother?"

Nanohiko froze at the sudden outburst. Like a nightmarish dream come true, right before his eyes there sat beside him, the Marvelous Brave once again, but why did his / her breath stink?

"Y, Y, y, yu, YOU!" choked the younger boy.

"Not so loud, B.B.E.; can't you see this old man is sufferin'?" the fellow in blue groused back, irritably.

What in the world?! What was this guy doing here? He had been searching, waiting, hoping, for a full two weeks without a word or a sign, and then, this troubling person appears now, all of a sudden. B-B-E. Why!?

"_Ugh_, what a bad feeling...I feel like _road kill_. So this is what a morning after hangover feels like, huh?"

* * *

To be continued...

* * *

Author's Notes:

You must review. The God-Empress demands it.


	5. Chapter 5

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Disclaimer:

Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha is the creative property of Seven Arcs, whom created this wonderful anime/manga series. Anything not attributed to Seven Arcs belongs to their respective owners, such as other series, references, and vice-versa. This story is written purely just for fun, guys; please for God's sake, don't sue us! We're just college students with too much free time on our hands! On the other hand, any specific author created characters we created for this fic (despite how unoriginal they may be at times) are ours. So without further ado, let's get on with the show!

The Surgeon General's Warning:

Read at your own risk.

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**BE BORN**! / MANLY! MASKED! MAGICAL! GUY Nanohiko

Show me the way to you...!

Prologue 05:

Believe in the Great Me who believes in You!

A Genderbending Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha AU fanfic co-produced by the evil genius of Tempest Dynasty and James "Ray" Edwards

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A boy who was really a girl; an illusion, palpable and insubstantial; what was one to call such a sly "Actress Again"?

"That answer is: I'm what you call a '_Sorcerer_'-_da ze_!" answered Enforcer Chrono L. Harlaown, shoving a mighty pointing finger up at the blazing high noon sun.

Young Nanohiko Takamachi, age: nine and a third, understandably, sweated at the bombastic display.

"_Anou_... What are you talking to? ..._Who _are you talking to?"

At his statement, boy-mode, or so he assumed since "he" had a rather masculine voice at the moment, Chrono-san whirled on him with a dark leer that seemed to inflate his person into ridiculously huge proportions. The "boy" towered over him like a fearsome demon god, all flames and thunderbolts!

"Eh. Eh? EHHHhhhhhhhhh? What was that just now? You should know; you ought to know, this old man was answering a question that was-_blurgh_!"

"'_Blurgh_'?"

Abruptly crawling on all fours, reminding Nanohiko disturbingly of an animal, the blue-haired boy, clad in a non-descript black _gakuran_ with grey threadwork, darted into the bushes. A normal human being would have laughed or felt some sympathy for the pitiable retching emanating from behind the greenery, but Nanohiko could only stare into the unknown with undeniable dread. To him, the exaggerated noise was like the horrid death throes of some fell beast --- "_Hublerarghh_" and "_Uwragghhhh_!"

Oh Buddha, why had he even decided to go look for this incorrigible person?

"_Ugh_... Did I, over do it?" the same person came hobbling out of the bushes a moment later, looking even worse than before. Heavy black bags clung around "his" blue eyes, enhanced with a shaded menace by the rim of the matching black student cap he wore. "His" haggard, anxious face reminded Nanohiko of an equally tired, panting German Shepherd with its ears drooping forwards.

Why it would not be difficult at all to image dog ears and tail assorting Harlaown-san at the very moment...?

"_Ahmmm_!"

Ah, there goes a _hamu katsu_. Of course, it was dangerous to leave open containers in front of police dogs, and...wait, eh!?

"...What the? Hey! Who said--"

"_Uwaaa_! Isn't it delicious?" the not-a-he squealed girlishly in delight. "You really will make a good wife some day for a special someone, squirt!"

A demon: there was no doubt about it, so Nanohiko shuddered pitiably, as he came to that most enlightening conclusion. This fellow was a demon. The nerve of "him"! Chrono had slipped right back onto the bench, beneath his notice, and the tricky _oni_ was having "his" way with Suzuka-_ojou_san's precious _bento_ with utter disregard it was meant for someone else, namely: Nanohiko Takamachi!

"Oh, wait, this is that girl's cooking just now, isn't it? No way, a wet-behind-the-ears runt like you could cook this scrumptious."

"And why would a guy know how to cook like that?!" he growled back tersely.

"My _Anii_-sama does; what do **you **have say to for yourself, squirt?" replied Chrono, evilly, as a matter of fact. "He" fished out a pair of lacquered chopsticks from the _furoshiki_, the sight of which immediately shot "his" good cheer full of holes. "_Giyah_... not... these... again..."

Now, feeling a little vindictive, it was Nanohiko's turn to return the evil with interest. "Ho, as expected of an _alien_ foreigner: even you are no match for the elegant art of chopsticks."

"What was that you mangy monkey that still sounds like a girl? The Great I, you should know, am at least a quarter _Homo faerie_!"

"Oh, really now? At least, I'm not the messed up stupid head, who really has boobs and girly parts, pretending to be a guy: talks like a guy, walks like a guy, and fights like a guy. And, hey, hey, you're a thousand years to soon to be thinking of yourself as '_Ore_-_sama_'! ...wait, you speak Japanese!?"

"Pah, what a pathetic language..." Chrono grinned and puffed out "his" flat "manly" chest in smug pride. "I learned it in just two weeks flat."

Nanohiko stared, flatly, before sulking away with a half-hearted parting shot, "Bet you still can't read or write properly."

"B, Buh!?"

Ah, ha! What a twist of luck. He had not expected that to work at all. Now, the boy came back with a smirk of his own, feeling the swing of fortune in his favor.

"_Ugh_, what a flaming clunky language! Why do you need fifty-thousand odd symbols, three sets of alphabets, and two reading aid systems just to read and write a sentence for, anyways?! Even with my _obviously _fantastic memory and _flash training_, it's all bungled up in a knot inside my head that I'm still tugging and wheedling apart."

Huh, what did "he" mean by "flash training"? A knot inside "his" head? ...though, he had to agree it was an awful lot of kanji and vice-versa to memorize, until he graduated from high school in another nine to ten years from now.

"_Hmph_, but the level of technology on this world is just so, _kya_-_huhuhu_, laughable! Even though my Intelligent Device isn't dedicated towards electronic warfare, our processing power was still plenty to wrangle this little country's supposed super computers easy to our beck and call. A new identity with citizenship, legitimate registry information, bank accounts and statements, property, certifications... And all it took was just a connection at a street side cafe to your World-Wide-Web: _Sankyuu Berii Much-Uuu_, Earth Monkeys~!"

Wait... What! So she **really** _is_ an alien from outer space?

"And what's worse? I'm probably the richest little fourteen cycle old, well, eighteen officially, brat in this country, with ten billion something yen sitting in his bank account," Chrono laughed devilishly, before stabbing the chopsticks straight through an unsuspecting, crisp _hamu katsu_. "Isn't that grand? AH-hahahahaha!"

Normally, Nanohiko would be appalled by such bad manners, but his mind was presently in apoplectic shock over the fact this alien "boy" beside him was sitting on a small fortune, acquired by devious means to say the least. "T-Ten b, b, b, b-billion yen!? Wh, what.... H, How... Never mind! What the heck do you need that much money for!?"

"Don't worry, don't worry; I'll try to return it, but with this probably being my last mission and all, I can't exactly pinky swear to that, squirt."

"His" last mission? What did "he" mean by that?

"But, y'know, you really gave me a lot of trouble!" Chrono gobbled down the tasty morsel grumpily. "Wh, _mmm_, what were you thinking tucking a perfect stranger into your bed and letting your mom walk in on them in the morning, huh? I was caught practically with my skirt down, and barely remembered to memory flash her, before scrambling out the window."

"Memory flash": that would explain why _Kaa_-chan...hey!

"Blazing hell, you got no idea how annoying these two weeks have been for me! Moving in to a new apartment. Buying furniture. Learning the language and the lay of the land. New clothes. New everything. Culture shock! _Dah_. Oh, just thinking about it makes my head hurt!"

"_Oi_!" Nanohiko demanded, "who said you could mess with my _Okaa_-san's memories?"

"Says the Necessary and Proper Clause in my rights and responsibilities as a Special Enforcer, under the auspices of the Time-Space Administration Bureau's Executive Intelligence Department, Special Investigation Offices, Section Triple-Seven '_The Great Gurren Brigade_'! When operating on underdeveloped planets, it is necessary to conceal the presence of high technology, _ergo_ '**Magic**', and-or extraterrestrial life from the populace. The last thing the Union would want is for Yup-Three civilizations, like you all, to find a better way to kill each other, before their true potential is realized."

"Uh...so what does that make you?"

"I am an intergalactic, planetary peacekeeper with varying degrees of judiciary powers, depending on the world I'm on, and how much leeway we're afforded by the brass for the operation (which is a lot more when you compare me to run-of-the-mill Enforcers). The locales are supposed to be inclined to cooperate with me, but not doing so in good faith is no sweat off their hairy backsides either. It just means I'll remember they weren't very good _friends_ of mine."

"And why are you telling me this?"

"Because I've conscripted you, no-duuuhhh _da ze_!"

Nanohiko sweated; he did not understand these really complicated words Chrono-san was using at all, though the boy had the impression that the "cross-dressing" really-a-she was some manner of super important --- police officer? What was this about...well...err... Gah, it was so hard to understand. Couldn't "he" have told it to him in an easier to understand way?

"...seriously?"

"Look," the special, _erm_, Police_boy_ took a deep breath, before nailing him with dead serious glare, "Just what the hell have you been doing for the past two weeks?"

"...looking for you," gulped Nanohiko, haplessly.

The air tensed, punctuated by the rippling ambience of the near water fountain, as Chrono Lindy Harlaown fixed him with a long hard look. He could imagine, easily, gears turning and arguments breaking out in the offices of _pathos_ and _ethos_, on the floors of seventh and eighth over how to respond to the present calamity at the help desk. Yes, they should not have expected so much from a nine-year-old, but from where they were from standards were different, darn it!

The Police_boy_ took a long dragging breath, like a dragon about to breathe fire, and huffed, "...Okay, now, I am happy and pissed."

"H-Happy?" the Takamachi boy stuttered, a little more eagerly than he would have liked.

"Because that means you already gave me one answer I wanted to hear."

"...Huh?" Now, what answer could that be?

"**Pissed**: you wasted two weeks looking for me, when you should've been hunting down the Jewel Seeds!? ..._Raising __**Heart**_, get y'er flaming behind out here now!"

On command, or perhaps it was because she simply needed an impetus to appear, the perfect ruby on his bracelet glittered and glowed, spitting out a smoldering blue(?) _hi no tama_ (ball of flame) into the space before them. Nanohiko's jaw dropped, gaping in awe at the supernatural poltergeist, big as a soccer ball. He prayed, inwardly, that he was not about to be cursed or some such, as that was not his idea of adding more spice to his drearily boring life.

"Afternoon. Ma'am," spoke the ball of flame in a stilted feminine voice. Each word "she" spoke punctuated by a glimmer across the surface of the flames.

It was thus that Nanohiko's common sensed tried to reassert itself,

"H-Hey, are you nuts? What if people-"

"_Bakayarou_," he was told to stand aside by Chrono, as "he" munched through another _hamu katsu_, "I already put up a small temporal displacement field around here, after your girly left."

Swallowing, the Police_boy_ stabbed the chopsticks again, much to Nanohiko's aghast indignation, through the last _hamu katsu_ in the bento and stood up, just leaving them there. What impossibly bad manners!

"Alright, Raising Heart, I'm waiting on..." Chrono paused thoughtfully, pressing an index finger to "his" temple. There was a moment's pause, as "his" brow furrowed in concentration, before "his" expression brightened in dumbfounded awe, having figured the answer "his" question no doubt. "Oh, sorry! ...hey, you, _baka_: give her the command '_Applique-On_.'"

"'_A-Ap-PRI-que_-_On-uu_'?"

At his unwitting word, simply trying to sound out the foreign word, and not butcher it too horribly, a transformation occurred in the ball of flame: from an ethereal blue to a warm orange-red. Raising Heart was much smarter, apparently so, than whatever average commonplace equivalent of her was to be able to interpret and take advantage of his broken pronunciation.

"My thanks; that makes conversation much easier."

"That's the command to turn on her personality layer," Chrono explained in a matter of fact tone, "so we can talk back and forth like normal people, yeah? Usually, you keep it turned off, since it isn't necessary in combat, and a potentially fatal power drain, too, under those circumstances." She then turned a glare at the flame that was Raising Heart's manifestation of sorts. "Now, get on with it, _you_."

"Understood: ma'am, it was my judgment that the Devicer was not ready to continue with the operation on his own. Takamachi Nanohiko's inexperience caused the Jewel Seed encountered on that night two weeks ago to escape successfully."

"You what-?!" the Police_boy_'s expression bugged out in gaping shock...

"Uh, that's..."

...Before recovering swiftly into a red-faced storm of indignation, "I can't believe this! You let the _first _Jewel Seed we came across, one that I almost got myself stupidly **killed **over, run the hell away? What's wrong with you?!"

"A-ah, erm..."

Nanohiko wished he had a good explanation, but honestly, Raising Heart-san was right. His inexperience and the heat of the moment caused their Jewel-thingie-prize to get away. So, he sucked up his pride and got ready to take the blame, except...

"It was under my advisement that the Jewel Seed escaped, ma'am. The temporal displacement you placed was about to crash. Discretion appeared to be the better part of valor. And with our forces combined now, subduing another Jewel Seed-"

What the... Raising Heart-san? What is she...? The effect was instantaneous as the indignant Chrono Harlaown turned "his" displeasure on the ball of flame instead. Nanohiko did know what to say, but perhaps, it was better he did not say anything at all. His debt to "The Flame" seemed to have just gone up, for better or worse.

"Idiot! Don't you know what condition I'm in? This bungling guy is the only hope we've got," said the "boy", sticking a mean thumb in his direction. "My magic circuits and linker core could take anywhere from six months to a year, or maybe even more, without proper medical care, to recover after the stunt I pulled. I'm barely outputting enough to be 'C' rank as is! On top of that..."

Suddenly, Chrono brought "his" hands together, a crisp sharp clap punctuated the air, as a glowing blue circle drew itself spontaneously on the tiled orange-brown pavement at "his" feet. Inscribed on the perfect circle were arcane letters and symbols, whose meaning escaped Nanohiko in spite of his near-immediate fascination. With a burst of free particles and crackling electricity, something even more intriguing emerged, the pavement shimmering at its very presence.

The young boy, neatly, did a doubletake at the "Sword" (if it could be called such a thing) that rose into the air before the Police_boy_, "his" brow furrowed in concentration. For all intents and purposes, it was the most terrifying _yanagi ba_ (lit. willow blade) he had ever seen in his life: why in decency's sake, would anyone turn a sashimi preparation fillet knife into a weapon completely escaped his imagination! The weapon, though, clearly had seen better days for at present its blade had been shattered into many fragments, suspended together haphazardly, by a network of hissing red hot veins reaching out from a pattern that appeared to be its original shape.

All "roads" connected to a central artery that lead back to a dozing "eye", disturbingly enough, where the hilt would be a normal sword; this one came complete with a working eyelid made from some thin synthetic metal of silver. Even now, he could see eye movement, just like a human being's, rippling rapidly beneath the lid, as if the "owner" were dreaming. The veins pulsed and hissed, and inevitably, a noise not unlike the beat of a heart began to thud in Nanohiko's ears to his astonishment.

"I can't wake _Him_ up anymore," said Chrono, shamefaced. The vulnerable expression on "his" face was oddly humbling to see coming from a person he thought to be incorrigible. "It was a miracle I managed to even activate _Him _for that little short while. I don't have the materials or the tools to fix _Him _either."

"The damage is quite extensive..." Raising Heart gave her assessment, "our combat power has been effectively halved, then."

"And, we are on our own, _genius_." added the Police_boy_, tightly.

"Pardon?"

"Do I _look _like I'm packing a hyperspace relay on me? You and I are completely alone, lost in space! We could be in another galaxy for all I know!"

He did not know what a "hyperspace r-re-lay" was, but the gravity of the situation was not lost entirely on young Nanohiko. The meaning of the Bureau officer's earlier mutterings became a little clearer, and the dour mood of the hour became unshakable. Unless the real she behind the illusion of the older boy before him was willing to violate "his" principles, there was no way "he" would ever be going back home to the stars.

Raising Heart was the first to break the silence, "Then, shall I begin to familiarize the Devicer with my functions?"

What the? Hey, shouldn't they be more considerate of-?

"Yes, please!" Chrono huffed irritably. Clapping "his" hand together in a double staccato, the broken blade sank back into the circle, and the "magical" phenomena disappeared with nary a trace. "...Wait..._kono_, you little! Why didn't you begin to teach him sooner?"

H-Hey, now, was it really okay for them to continue on like this without even offering a single word empathy to Chrono-san?

"I thought a resting period would be best for his body to become acclimated to my presence."

The nerve of these girls; they were not even paying attention to his non-verbal protests at all.

"Errghhhh, and you, _bakayarou~_! What are you spacing out for? Put a sunny smile, sunny side up on that face, ya dummy! Isn't this what you've been wishing for? To be a '_Hero_'?"

Takamachi Nanohiko, age nine and third, was quite taken aback to be thrust into the center of attention, so suddenly. He gaped, speechless, that this tomboy who had only met him for a matter of two hours at best would dare to say such a thing, and worst, hit the nail right on the head. Nobody who knew him, not his parents, not his siblings, and not even his dear friends, Arisa-_jou_chan and Suzuka_-ojou_san, had been able to perceive, the underhand of his mask; what he was wishing for all along to change his world forever.

"Hey, hey, stop starin' at me dumb. If you keep those fish eyes up any longer, you'll make this old man sick, and I'm still sick from your country's _sake_! _Ugh_. Look, I can read you like an open book, 'kay? Annnd, right now, you're thinking... Where do you belong...ain't that right? That's right. Nod your head. Be a little more honest with yourself, seriously."

It cannot be true. H, How could _she_ know?

"As for that place, _geez_, isn't it obvious? A troublesome guy, the kind that just **pains **the great me to leave alone, like you, _mister_ --- that kind of man belongs right by my side!"

At those words, the incorrigible proof of magic was shown to him, that his dream was reality. Chrono Lindy Harlaown, abruptly, began to shine and sparkle brighter than the sun, with a melodic chime. Space and time began to twist, the clouds in the sky sweeping by faster and faster into a blur, day into night. Round and round the world went, and like glass, it broke along with the Marvelous Brave, exploding in a gigantic supernova. The light blinding, forcing young Takamachi Nanohiko to shield his eyes.

But the light never died, if anything, he could now sense the presence of hundreds, tens of thousands, billions of heavenly lights. Squinting the boy dared to open his eyes to gaze upon the infinite, and it was great, indeed. Here, he was sitting on a bench atop the Milky Way galaxy with its many spiraling arms, dancing in the sea of cosmos. So many colors and sights all around that the words escaped him breathless. The "ground", if it could be called such a thing shook, and out of from the fading brightness before him, an absurdly, impossibly colossal mountain arose, dwarfing him, rumbling awesomely, as the bold, sharp staccato of footsteps, emerging from the light of the star, approached that sent ripples across space and time, .

_UOOOOOOOOOHHH_~! What was this vivacious, peerless "_NAISU_ _BODII_" he saw?! A woman, nay, a Demon Goddess from head to toe, a class above Hero and Villain, stood before him, with long blue hair tied up into a high ponytail; her worn, trusted high-collared trenchcoat flashed steel blue, stripped with red and studded with gleaming silver, as it fluttered in the galactic gale. She gilded with _sakura _lip gloss, the supreme dangerous beauty, breaking through heaven and earth: spicy, yet cool; violent, yet peaceful; cruel, yet compassionate, that sort of raging blue flame. Those strong blue eyes could not be fooled, burning away the darkness and exposing the black lies of the ugly heart; windows into a pure soul that would not waver, because getting lost was a Buddha damn waste of time!

And why the hell was a volcano erupting in a geyser of flame and magma in the middle of outer space?! _Arrghhhhhhhhhh_, it made no sense; his head hurts, and, _geh_, his nose was bleeding(!?), b-but it's so --- awesome!

"HEY-HEY, _GREAT BIG SIS _IS TALKIN', SO _**LISTEN UP**_! Fear. Doubt. Throw away those worthless things; to the Man chosen by me, such things have no meaning! _Rap is a Man's Soul_, got that?! **Young Man**: stand tall, chin up, staring straight ahead, and move forward with each turn of the Spiral, a bridge to surpass infinite time and space. If you can't believe in yourself, then believe in the great me who believes in you, Takamachi Nanohiko!"

Ah, everyone, I am sorry, but these tears in my eyes...I think the She-Devil has her claws in me~!

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To be continued...

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